Nuzlocke: Blood and Bond
by mangaluva
Summary: Sequel to "After Armageddon". Saylee heads west to the better-off nation of Johto in search of Team Rocket and her brother Red. Johto is a land of mysticism and mysteries, and the things that Saylee will discover will turn her world upside down... again.
1. Prologue

_This is the sequel to my FireRed Nuzlocke fic, _Armageddon._ It's better to read that before starting on this, or else miss a lot of characters and backstory._

_First off, for anyone who doesn't know, the Nuzlocke challenge is aimed at hardcore Pokémon gamers who want a bit more challenge out of their game. There are three basic rules, with various alterations possible._

_Catch only the first Pokémon you meet on each route or territory. If you kill the first Pokémon, too bad. Move on and catch nothing in that area ever again. (I'm making two alterations to this rule: one minor and one major. The minor one is the first new Pokémon on each team; I'm not interested in having, say, three Pidgey on a team. The major one is that if I see a shiny, all catching rules go out the window, but then if the shiny is captured in this irregular manner it is to be put in a special PC box and nothing else. If I do catch one, I probably won't bring it up in the fic; I'll just have the joy of owning it XD)_

_Nickname all Pokémon. (I do this alliteratively.) This rule famously serves no real gameplay purpose, other than making rule 3 hurt more…_

_If a Pokémon faints in battle, it is dead. Box or release it, but never use it again. (I box them. And it is painful.)_

_I don't use the no-items rule. Also, when asked by a friend what happens if you run out of usable Pokémon entirely (IE your team is wiped out and you've no usable boxed Pokémon), I decided that it just means going back to the last save point, rather than starting the whole game over._

_So that's the challenge. It's certainly turned out to be more emotional than a usual runthrough of the game, making you much more attached to your Pokémon- which, again, just makes it hurt more when they die. *cries* That's probably what brings the Pokémon to life so much in your head. As a direct continuation of _Armageddon_, this is still Saylee's story, still searching for Red and seeking to take out Team Rocket. But there are plenty of new mysteries awaiting Saylee to the west…_


	2. Chapter 1

_Pokémon: 0 Deaths: 0_

_Dear Saylee,_

_Grandpa made me write this week's letter to you, so here goes. Not a ton happening here. Koga's been through, he's moved into the Indigo Plateau with a couple disciples of his. Let's hope he can keep the psychos up there under control. Flo and Elric have a litter of four eggs, or so SG says. They won't let anyone but her see them. Kinda wish I could see them, I've never seen a Pokémon egg. Speaking of babies, Toby's coming along. Never mind learning to talk, he won't shut up. He keeps wanting to learn to fight, too. He runs off to fight wild Pokémon all the time. I don't think Carrie and Hernan know what to do with him, really. They train with him every day and he still runs off. _

_But your mum's already told you about that already. Oh, a ton of the trees in Viridian Forest got levelled by a wildfire. Nobody really knows what caused it. It's sure made getting to Pewter a hell of a lot safer and easier, anyway. _

_That's it, I guess. Sam says hi. So do your Pokémon. Oh, and Daisy. Can't forget about her, even if I wish I could. People miss you and stuff, so get your ass in gear and find Red and Team Rocket already. What's taking you so long, anyway?_

_~Blue_

Saylee folded up the letter and started to tuck it at the back of a drawer with the others, before changing her mind and putting it in her bag with Red's letter. She picked up the stiff blue jacket that was draped over her chair and tugged it over her shoulders, wriggling her arms to stop the sleeves of her red shirt from getting twisted. The denim shorts were a little stiff too, but they'd grow softer with time while still being durable. She'd had denim trousers before, just never this _new_. She was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to bend her knees if they were any longer.

The black wool tights were thick and cosy and apparently absorbed electricity, which was a feature she wished her clothing had had back when she was training Paul.

_Stop that, Saylee_, she told herself, shaking her head. _Don't think about it. You're not Saylee, who's trained and lost many friends. You're Lyra, escaping the barbaric east to your mother's homeland._

Her "mother" was actually only about ten years older than Saylee, but Vera enjoyed getting to lie about her age and then be told she looked young. She was actually from Goldenrod, not New Birch, so she could easily act as a native without being caught out. Saylee didn't have to pretend to be fascinated by how much better-off Johto was.

Seventeen years ago, Kanto had erupted into terrible war. Humanity's mastery of technology had led them to try to subjugate Pokémon entirely, creating pokéballs that robbed them of their wills. The Pokémon fought back, and some humans fought for their rights. It was terrible chaos of everybody fighting everybody, and in the end, the side of subjugation tried to make their own Pokémon, far more powerful than any other. It went terribly, horribly right.

That Pokémon had been a powerful psychic. Only two of the scientists who had created it were still alive, and one was insane beyond all reason. Before leaving Kanto, she'd asked Mr Fuji about the creature he had helped to create.

"_We made him— Mew Two, we called him— to be the most powerful psychic ever. Too powerful. He could hear _everything. _He heard the hate and fear of an entire nation… and he could understand everything. Maybe that was something else he heard; that people and Pokémon couldn't understand each other. That has to be the reason that people and Pokémon can communicate now. Only Mew Two was powerful enough…_"

Seventeen years ago, thousands of people had woken up not knowing who they were, where they were, or who the creatures around them were. They didn't know that they had been enemies only hours before, and many still didn't.

Kanto had been shattered. People and Pokémon still fought, but now it was a struggle for survival and resources in a damaged, poisoned land. Johto was different. It was full of traditional communities, some of which had a powerful religious belief against pokéballs. It made them more backwards than Kanto at its technological height, but Johto had never gotten embroiled in the war. Everyone had woken up in the morning in their own beds, in peaceful communities, surrounded by people and Pokémon that they could talk to and figure things out with. Debts and grudges vanished overnight.

A lot of people thought they'd been reborn, given a clean slate. Some of the fanatics argued that the world had been brought into existence then and that diaries and photographs and records from before were just fabrications created by a higher power to deceive and comfort them. Most people thought this was nuts. Others abandoned whatever life they had picked up and started from scratch, defying the "role" they had been given.

Among them was Vera, who decided to travel east. When she saw how damaged Kanto was, she'd decided to throw herself into helping rebuild. Team Rocket had been just that, once, a group of people giving everything into rebuilding Kanto.

"In the beginning, Giovanni cautioned us that we might have to take extreme measures for the good of Kanto," Vera explained once. "But slowly, what was meant by 'the good of Kanto' began to change. A lot of people left. Only fanatics like me stayed. But the torturing of Pokémon on Five Island… it was too much, and your certainty of our wrongness opened my eyes and helped me accept that."

Team Rocket wasn't done, though. For three months, Vera had been teaching Saylee all she knew about the inner workings of Team Rocket. One month ago, under assumed identities, the pair of them decamped to New Bark Town, Johto.

Saylee packed her dreamcatcher into her bag. It was a random assortment of memories; two different coins, one from Daisy and one from Sabrina, dangling on strings tied to a battered spoon. A burnt-tipped feather was twisted into one of the strings. Blessed grave dirt was rubbed into all of the items. It protected her from nightmares and psychic influences, and whenever she woke up in the middle of the night, scared and alone, it soothed her.

She missed her Pokémon, but she knew that they were all right. Kaito and Sheska could continue their play-fights without having seen truly brutal battle. Hernan and Carrie were a happy family with little Tobias and Saylee would never disturb that. And Chaz…

She missed Chaz dearly, her first and dearest companion, almost as keenly as she missed her best friend Blue. Chaz alone she might have brought with her, but Charizard these days were painfully rare. She'd never seen another one. If she wanted to take out Team Rocket without them seeing her coming, she couldn't bring Chaz.

She picked up the hat Vera had given her and pulled it low over her eyes. It was huge and a little silly-looking but it would help disguise her face, which was the important part. She pulled it off again and combed her fingers through her hair. It was getting longer and would be a terrible mess if she didn't tie it down.

She ended up tying it into two low ponytails that drooped over her shoulders. It was a childish style that she'd never, ever worn before. Perfect.

"Here," Vera said, handing something to her as she stepped downstairs into the luxurious living room. At least, it was luxurious compared to the ramshackle hut that her real mother had finally been able to vacate a couple of months before for a small but nice house. Saylee already had a list of Johto products to send back to her. They didn't have electricity coming out of the wall in Pallet, not yet, but Professor Oak had several Pikachu that ran all of his electrical equipment.

Saylee unfolded the device. A screen blinked to life. "It's a pokégear," Vera said. "They're all the go here. It's a phone, but you can add digital maps and things to it as well."

"Sweet," Saylee said, opening the phonebook. Only Vera and Professor Elm's numbers were preprogrammed into it. "I'll keep in touch."

"You'd better," Vera said, giving her a one-armed hug. "Stop and say hi to Professor Elm before you go, sweetie!" she cooed.

"Bye, mummy!" Saylee said, making a face at Vera as she opened the door.

A small blue Pokémon bounced off of her ankles. Saylee looked down to see Marina run past her.

"Hi, Lyra!" the little Marill called. "We're playing tag!"

"You're it!" a little boy hollered, grabbing Saylee's arm. Ethan grinned up at Saylee. "C'mon and play with us, Lyra!"

"Sorry, kid," Saylee said, giving the ten-year-old a playful push. "I've got to make a trip today. You and Marina have fun!"

"Aww…" Ethan slouched off after his Marill. Saylee had gotten used to answering to "Lyra" largely due to Ethan and Marina calling it every ten minutes. Ethan was five years older than the other two children in the tiny village and decided very quickly that Saylee was the only suitable playmate for a "big boy" like him. Vera thought the kid had a precocious crush. Saylee humoured him because he reminded her of Red at that age, always trying to be mature and not always succeeding.

Red. That, of course, was the other reason she had travelled west. The only keyword she had, the only clue to his location, was "silver". But what the hell did that mean?

She had to figure it out soon. Sabrina had said he was dying. For all she knew, he was already…

Saylee was about to knock on the door to Elm's lab when she spotted something odd in the bushes— a flash of bright red.

"Ethan?" she asked, stepping around a Pecha bush, "is that you? Are you sneaking up on me?"

There was a boy in the bushes, but not the one in the red hoodie that Saylee was expecting. The boy was about the same age as Ethan but dressed in dark, scruffy, ill-fitting clothes. He had the tattered, half-starved look of a Kanto child, and such long red hair that Saylee wondered if it wasn't maybe a little girl.

"Hello?" she said, reaching out to the child. "What's your name? Mine's Lyra."

The kid looked up and her and his face was suddenly furious. He slapped her hand aside and pushed her back.

"LIAR!" he yelled, running away. Saylee stared after him in shock, confusion and not a little fear. _Was_ he from Kanto? Did he know…?

Her thoughts were distracted by a loud _crash_ from inside the lab.

{}

Inside of the lab tables were overturned, books had fallen from bookshelves, and Elm's assistant was trying not to laugh as the professor gave panicked chase to three little Pokémon.

"Lyra!" he called plaintively. "HELP!"

None of the three Pokémon were higher than Saylee's knee but they were certainly causing a fuss. The blue bipedal one was laughing and spitting jets of water at the little black-and-cream one, which kept emitting panicked cries. Every time it did, hot cinders shot out of its mouth, panicking the green one with a leaf on its head.

"_Water, fire and grass, oh my…_" Saylee thought, sighing as she watched the four run around. When the little blue one stopped laughing to charge up a water gun, Saylee reached down and grabbed its long snout, holding its jaws firmly shut. It flailed against her hold for a while, scraping at her with its little claws, but it was too young to do any real damage and eventually stood still in sullen defeat.

"Ta very much," the little black-and-white one gasped. "I'm right sorry, Chet…"

"Don't worry about it, Chip," the green one said magnanimously, patting Chip on the head with his large leaf. "Tyra! That was mean!"

"Mmm mmf mm-mmf," the water-type, Tyra, mumbled sullenly.

"I'll let you go if you promise to behave," Saylee said sternly. "If you don't, I'll tie your jaws together. Okay?"

"_Fine,_" Tyra complained when Saylee let her go. "It was _funny_," she said to Chet.

"It was mean," Chip mumbled. Saylee walked over and picked up him carefully, avoiding touching the four spots on his back that glowed like coals and radiated heat.

"You'll be safe up here," she promised. "My name's Lyra— it's a lot like yours!" she added, offering Tyra a friendly smile.

"I want a new name," the little water-type muttered, yelping when Chet _thwacked_ her with his leaf.

"Don't be rude," he admonished her. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lyra! Forgive Tyra's rudeness."

"Yes, well…" Professor Elm sighed in relief. "These little ones are getting too big for the lab. I thought you might want to adopt one of them, Lyra. I know you've never trained a Pokémon before…"

_If only you knew… _Saylee thought wryly. _I couldn't take a Pokémon this young with me against Team Rocket, but we still have no leads, and I do miss having my Pokémon around…_"…I'd love to," she said. Chip automatically snuggled into her arms. "I guess you like me, huh, Chip?"

"I do, right enough," Chip admitted shyly. "Can I be comin' to live with you, Lyra?"

"Of course you can," Saylee said with a smile. He and Professor Elm both looked so happy that she couldn't bring herself to turn them down. Besides, she felt happier already with Chip's warmth in her arms, so similar to Chaz when he was little. "I hope you don't mind?" she added to Chet and Tyra.

"Not at all," Chet said, smiling at them. "The Professor tells us that there are two other children in town with no Pokémon friends of their own. I look forward to meeting them."

"Why would I wanna live with _you_, anyway?" Tyra said in a huff.

"So, that's settled!" Professor Elm said, beginning to pick up some of his books. "My son went to fetch little Kris. They'll be here soon…"

"Professor, I didn't just visit because I heard the ruckus," Saylee said. "I was hoping for directions to Sir… well, Mr. Pokémon's house. I've spoken to him on the phone a couple of times and he's very interesting. I'd like to meet him."

"Interesting is a good word for it," the Professor chuckled. "Hmm. Well, from Cherrygrove…"

"I be knowin' the way!" Chip spoke up, his back spots glowing red with embarrassment when they looked at him. "I mean, I've been there before," he mumbled.

"That's brilliant!" Saylee said warmly, making Chip perk up. "And you can protect me from any big scary wild Pokémon, okay?"

"I think you could be beatin' 'em all up yourself," Chip mumbled.

{}

"There we go," Professor Elm said a while later as he tidied away the last bit of fallen equipment. "Where _has_ my son got to? He and Kris ought to be here by now…"

"They're probably playing somewhere," his assistant laughed. "Maybe they're playing with Ethan… I'll watch these two if you want to go look for them."

"And I'll watch Tyra," Chet offered. Professor Elm laughed and left.

"Suck up," Tyra muttered. "Stick your roots up the back of his labcoat, why don't you…"

"You could stand to be a little more polite," Chet snapped, wandering away to curl up and photosynthesize in the patch of light under the window. Tyra went the other way in a huff.

"Pssst!"

She looked up. There was a boy peering through a broken window near the back of the lab. Was it broken in all the mess they made?

"That girl's a liar," the boy whispered. "I'm gonna prove it. Do you want to come with? You look strong, and I need strong Pokémon."

Tyra glanced back across the lab. The assistant was crouching over Chet to check on him, and Chet himself seemed to be asleep.

"I'm the strongest there is," she promised. "Let me grab my pokéball and let's go."

{}

{}

_So I'm posting this two months before I said I would! I honestly didn't expect to get this written as fast as I have… but then, I've gotten a lot better at Nuzlocking, and while I haven't finished SoulSilver yet the body count is significantly lower than FireRed, so this is a more lighthearted story overall. I'll be posting weekly until I complete the fic, at which point the post rate will ramp up. Enjoy! :)_

_Also, would anybody be interested in a formspring for this universe, where you could ask questions of me or the characters? Mention if you are and I'll set one up :) _

_Name: Chip. Species: Cyndaquil. Nature: Timid. Ability: Blaze. Level: 5 _


	3. Chapter 2

_Pokémon: 1 Deaths: 0_

It was a gorgeous autumn day. Saylee was glad of her thick tights and jacket and the warmth of Chip in her arms because the crisp air was chilly. She wondered about getting a scarf somewhere.

"We're pretty rare, Mam says," Chip explained. "So scientists be comin' to where we live sometimes. They don't be doin' nothin' but watchin', which be kinda creepy but it's okay really 'cause they don't be doin' nothin'. But another kind of human called a poacher be comin' sometimes, too. They caught Mam." Chip sniffed. "I was all on me own, so Professor Elm took me home. Chet's a good mate, even if Tyra's bein' mean."

"You know, I used to have a friend who was mean to me," Saylee teased. "Turned out he was being mean because he cared about me!" _And I was being a genuine moron…_

Chip's spots flared red with embarrassment. "Naw, Tyra's just bein' mean 'cause her be Tyra," he muttered.

"If you say so," Saylee giggled, stepping into the market with thoughts of a new scarf and pokéballs in mind. Unfortunately, neither was in stock.

"Sorry about that, Lyra," the clerk, Darren, apologized. "Here, tell you what, we've got a promotion on these." He held out a small, square piece of metal. "You got a gear?"

"Yep," Saylee said, showing it off.

"Well, la-di-da!" Darren whistled. "Here's the girl that last month thought food colouring was exotic, now with a top-of-the-line gear. Look, slot this card in the side there and you've got a map."

"Nice," Saylee said happily, zooming in on the digital map of Cherrygrove. "Thanks, Darren!"

"Will that be all, your highness?" Darren said pompously, bowing.

"Fetch me some antidotes, peasant," Saylee responded, looking around for Chip. "Weedle stings can be a bitch."

She found Chip outside, sniffing at a dying flower.

"These make Chet sad," he commented. "Him be hatin' winter."

"Yeah, but I bet he loves spring," Saylee said, scooping him up. "And to get to spring, you've gotta go through winter. C'mon and show me how to get to Mr. Pokémon's, okay?"

It felt a little strange, watching a couple of kids with a Rattata and a Pidgey having a friendly, sporting battle. This time the previous year, she had been stuck on an island far from home, recovering from many injuries, not knowing that Miranda was dead or that Pedro was searching the waves alone for her…

_No._ She focused on the good memories. Hernan and Carrie had found each other out there, and it was probably having each other that had helped them get through the terrible things that were to follow.

Here she was again, in a peaceful land far from home, where children and Pokémon battled for play, not for survival. When Chip sparred with a few wild Weedle and Rattata, Saylee felt no fear for his life or safety. She let him in on the trick of forming large, hot embers, and he looked so proud of himself the first time he managed to spit one hot enough to melt part of a Kakuna's shell. The insect hissed at them, baring its claws, as it span out some thread to cover up the non-lethal hole.

"How'd you be knowin' about embers?" Chip asked in awe. "You're a human!"

Saylee smiled at the memory of an excited little Charmander babbling away about his new trick. "It's a secret," she said with a wink, putting her finger to her lips.

All in all, she was feeling quite lighthearted by the time she reached Mr. Pokémon's.

"I'll put you away for awhile, okay?" Saylee said, taking out Chip's pokéball. "This is all gonna be human stuff. It'll bore you."

"_Secret_ human stuff?" Chip asked. "I won't be tellin'! '_Specially_ not Tyra!"

"I know," Saylee giggled, returning him. She pocketed his pokéball and knocked on the door.

"Ah!" said the elderly gentleman who opened the door. He had a large white moustache and a shiny black bowler hat. "Saylee! It has been too long. How are you?"

"Good to see you, Sir Geoffrey," Saylee laughed, shaking his hand.

"My dear, do feel free to call me Mr. Pokémon", he said, bowing her inside. "A joke though it may be, it is nevertheless a name that I have chosen to take pride in."

"Sure thing, Mr. Pokémon." Saylee stepped in and stared around in awe at the maps and notes all over the room. "Oh, wow…"

"I use 'em to track Pokémon migratory patterns," Mr. Pokémon said proudly. "There's nobody in this country knows more about Pokémon than me! Here, I finished updating this for you." He handed Saylee's Pokédex back to her. She clipped the portpad back onto it and turned it on, scrolling through pages of new information.

"Thank you, Mr. Pokémon," she said, jumping as something soft and furry wound around her ankles. "Hello, Frederick! How are you?"

"Very well," Frederick said. "I have returned from a long journey. Well, it would have been long, were my route not interrupted by a Sudowoodo migration…"

"Ah, so you were unable to investigate this business at the Lake of Rage?" Mr. Pokémon said mournfully.

"Lake of Rage?" Saylee asked, looking around at the maps. Mr. Pokémon pointed out a map of a huge body of water with lines drawn around it.

"They say that, a long time ago, some Gyarados went on a rampage," he explained, "and the crater left by their rage filled up with rainwater and became a lake. Well, for all that it's a peaceful enough spot, but for some reason the Pokémon that normally migrate to it are dispersing to other places. Very odd. I wonder if there might be some funny business there…"

"Hmmm…" Saylee looked around at the maps. "There isn't any other 'funny business' that you've noticed, is there?"

"Well, there's some disrupted nesting near Olivine, but that's because of the building of the Trainer Tower, nothing suspect there," Mr. Pokémon commented.

"Might account for the Sudowoodo," Frederick agreed. "Oh, the weather's been odd as well, and some of the humans."

"Humans?" Saylee asked. "What do you mean, humans?"

"Well, I heard from a very sweet Furret that her human wasn't happy with not being able to get to Goldenrod," Frederick said, grooming his tail idly. "She was worried about her little sister. Apparently some thugs in black have been menacing the underground shopping centre there…"

"Thugs in black?" Saylee said sharply. Mr. Pokémon also looked interested.

"Weren't there thugs in black menacing those lovely islands?" he asked. "I'd stay away from them if I were you, my dear."

"I'll keep that advice in mind," Saylee said thoughtfully. "Here, I got a pokégear. Can I have your phone number? I'd like to know if you hear about anything else unusual. Anything else at all, human or Pokémon…"

"He only pays attention to other humans when it's to do with Pokémon, I warn you now," Frederick said. Saylee smiled.

"That'll be fine," she promised him.

"Here you go, my dear," Mr. Pokémon said. "I've put my phone number into- my word!" The pokégear jumped and buzzed in his hand. Saylee also jumped in surprise.

"_Lyra!_" Professor Elm shouted as soon as she found the connect button. "_It's terrible! Truly terrible! Vera gave me your number, so please, you and Chip must hurry back right away_!" With a _click_, he hung up.

"Something's happened," Saylee said, putting it away. "I'd better go. Thank you so much, Mr. Pokémon! Thank you, Frederick!"

"Safe trip home!" Mr. Pokémon called after her.

{}

"Hey, _Saylee_!"

Saylee stopped short in front of the Cherrygrove clinic. The red-haired boy from before was standing on the path to New Bark, Tyra at his side. Both of them were glaring angrily at her.

"Tyra, what's going on?" Saylee asked suspiciously. "It's me, Lyra."

"Lyra for _liar_," the boy yelled, pointing at Saylee. "What'd you do? Where did he go?"

"What? Who?" Saylee said, thoroughly confused. Her confusion just pissed off the boy more.

"Battle me!" The boy demanded, dark red eyes flashing. "When I win, you'll _have_ to tell me! Tyra, get her!"

"Sure," Tyra said, grinning wickedly. Saylee dodged as Tyra jumped her, jaws wide and small claws waving.

"Hey, that's not how you do it!" Saylee admonished the kid, releasing the only Pokémon she had to hand. "Chip! Tackle Tyra!"

"_Whit_?" Chip said, staring at Tyra in surprise and trepidation as he materialized. "But her be a _water_ type…"

"We've been training all day," Saylee said encouragingly. "Show her how much stronger you are! Tackle!"

"Okay…" Chip said timidly, flinging himself into a full-bodied tackle. He looked as surprised as anyone by how far back Tyra was thrown. Tyra hit the kid on the ankles, nearly knocking him over too. He jumped away, looking furious.

"No!" The boy yelled, stamping his foot. "Just you wait, liar! I'll get more Pokémon and BEAT you!" He pushed past Saylee and ran off. Tyra picked herself up and started after him.

"Tyra, wait!" Saylee called. "What's going on?"

"It's a long story," Tyra said, looking oddly serious. "But I don't think that kid should be left on his own. I'll get you back for that, Chip!" She turned and ran after the boy. "Silver, wait!"

"Silver?!" Saylee said in shock, but Silver and Tyra were already gone.

"_Red… Silver…_"

"Lyra? What's goin' on?" Chip asked timidly. "What's bein' wrong with Tyra?"

"I think," Saylee said, "she found someone she wants to be nice to."

Chip looked aghast. "_Whit_?! But her's never been nice to _anyone…_"

Saylee nodded, thinking about the boy Silver, wondering who or what he was looking for, and wondering if he could be the link that would lead her to Red.

{}

"Rule one: the thief always returns to the scene of the crime!" a man yelled, grabbing Saylee by the shoulders the moment she stepped into the lab. On automatic, Saylee kneed him hard in the crotch. "_Oooft!_"

"That's assaulting an officer!" A Growlithe yelled, snapping at Saylee's feet. "You're _nicked_!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Saylee gasped, realizing that the man's outfit as a police uniform. "I'm so sorry, you just scared the hell out of me…"

"She didn't do it, Mr Police Man!" Ethan yelled. "She didn't do anything!"

"She did kick him," Marina pointed out. Ethan frowned at her.

"Yeah, but Lyra didn't _steal_ any Pokémon!" he insisted, shoving at the Growlithe. "She's innocent!"

"If she is, then what's _this_?!" the policeman demanded, grabbing Chip. The little fire-type squealed in fright and his back flared up. The policeman dropped him with a yell of pain.

"_That_ is clearly a Cyndaquil, a _fire-type_," Chet said dryly. "Our kidnapped friend Tyra is a Totodile, a _water-type_. And female."

"Sir, I can confirm that that is indeed a fire-type," the Growlithe said, nodding at Chip.

"Thank you, Gerry," the officer said, blowing on his burned fingertips.

"We were seein' Tyra, though," Chip put in. "Her was bein' with a mean ginger boy!"

"Yeah, that's what I said!" Ethan agreed. "I saw a kid with red hair— wait, that was a _boy_?" He looked in confusion at Marina, who bobbed her tail and shrugged.

"Tyra didn't exactly seem kidnapped, though," Saylee added. "She went after him willingly. His name's Silver…"

"I see! I'm on the case!" the policeman said, running off.

"Yes, sir! We're on the case!" Gerry yapped, running after the officer. "Wait for me, Officer Looker!"

"What the hell was that?" Saylee said, watching them go.

"Professor Elm, do you have to be crazy to be a police officer?" Ethan asked.

"I, uh, don't think it's recommended…" the Professor said, looking out of the door at the departing officers.

"Oi, Lyra?" Chip said, climbing up into her arms. "Can I be askin' you a secret question?"

"Sure, Chip," Saylee said. He leaned up to talk in her ear.

"Is your real name bein' Saylee?" he whispered. "Are you bein' a _spy_?"

Saylee glanced around. Professor Elm was trying to calm down an overexcited Ethan and Marina, while his assistant comforted Chet. "…yes, and kinda," She whispered back. "I'm looking for some very bad humans, Chip. Poachers and thieves and killers, and nobody you need to get involved with. I'm going to let Professor Elm know that I can't look after you. You can go and live with that little girl that was going to adopt Tyra…"

"Whit?!" Chip gasped. "No! Don't you be likin' me?" He sounded heartbroken.

"Oh, Chip, I _do_!" Saylee said, giving him a hug, ignoring the heat spots on his back. They charred two black spots into each arm of her denim jacket, forcing her to shift her grip. "I like you a lot, Chip. That's why I don't want to take you with me. These are bad, bad people…"

"All the more reason t'be havin' me with you! To be protectin' you!" Chip declared. "I want t'be fightin' anyone who be poachin' like the humans who took me Mam! I'm not scared, Ly… Say…"

"Lyra," Saylee said, putting a finger to her lips and winking again to remind him that it was a secret. Chip nodded.

"Professor Elm," Saylee said, "I know you wanted to give Pokémon to your son and Kris, but can I keep Chip anyway? I'm thinking of taking a trip, and some company would be nice…"

"You needn't worry about the children," Professor Elm said. "I often have Pokémon here, so I'm sure my son can be… er… convinced that he ought to let Chet go live with Kris." He smiled ruefully.

"I'm sure I can play with both of them plenty," Chet said, looking quite excited. "Just… promise to bring Tyra back safe? I know you don't like her much, but she is a friend of mine."

"Her was bein' mean to me," Chip complained quietly.

"She just wanted you to come out of your shell and interact with us," Chet said gently. "You were closed off like a Cloyster when the Professor brought you here. Tyra doesn't mind people being angry, but she hates seeing them miserable."

"We'll do our best," Saylee promised him. Chet was reminding her uncomfortably of Chaz, worrying about Ben.

_I'll do all I can,_ she thought to herself, _to get all the lost children home safe…_

{}

{}

_Weekly update ahoy! Although I nearly forgot because I was getting my daily NaNoWriMo written. Is anyone else out there NaNoWriMoing this year?_


	4. Chapter 3

_Pokémon: 1 Deaths: 0_

"So I was thinking," Saylee said as they set out afresh the next morning, "a good way to help you get stronger is to take you to the Bellsprout training tower."

"What's that?" Chip asked.

"I've heard it's in Violet City, not too far from here," Saylee said, zooming in on the pokégear map of Violet. "It's full of monks who've dedicated their lives to enlightenment through constant training, they say. And the monks are almost all humans and Bellsprout."

"Warrior monks? That's soundin' proper scary," Chip said, before shaking his head and flaring up his back. "I'm not bein' scared, though! I said I'd be getting' stronger, and I will!"

Saylee smiled. "This one'll be easy for you," she promised. "Bellsprout's a grass-type. They'll burn up if you look at them too hard!"

"Lyra! Hey, LYRA!"

Saylee turned to see Ethan and Marina running towards her. "You're not really going, are you?" the boy whined.

"Don't go!" Marina added. Saylee smiled and crouched down to Ethan's height.

"I'm just going on a little trip to see the sights of Johto," she promised. "I won't be gone _that_ long!"

"Well, if you _are_ going," Ethan decided, "you need to bring back some cool Pokémon! If you want Chip to get stronger, he needs to be part of a team! C'mon, I'll show you how!"

Saylee bit her tongue to avoid saying that she knew perfectly well how to catch a Pokémon and had done so roughly fifty times. There was no need to blow her cover as a newbie trainer, and anyway the kid looked so adorably excited about getting to teach her something.

He didn't quite manage to catch the Rattata he'd targeted, but Saylee thanked him for the valuable tips anyway.

"Here! A present!" Ethan said, cramming five empty pokéballs into her hands. "Now you can catch a Pokémon too, so Chip can have a friend to play with!"

"Hmmm…" Saylee looked around. Something brown bobbed out of the grass to peer at them and vanished again. "Chip, try ember! There!"

"Okay!" Chip said, spitting hot embers at the grass. The brown Pokémon shot out, yelling and waving its scorching tail. Saylee recognized it easily because they were always around the path between New Bark and Cherrygrove. Sentret were as ubiquitous in Johto as Rattata were in Kanto

"Okay, then!" He shouted. "Bring it on! You burned my lunch, so now I'm hungry and mean! RAH!" He growled at Chip.

"Tackle him, Chip," Saylee giggled. Just as the Sentret reared up on his tail, Chip knocked him back with a well-placed tackle to the middle of his chest. "What do you think, Ethan? Do I use the pokéball now?"

"Yeah!" Ethan hollered, jumping up and down excitedly. "Go, Lyra!"

"Then here I go!" Saylee flung one of the pokéballs at the downed Sentret. He disappeared easily.

"Congratulations!" Marina said brightly. "You caught one! Great for a first time, huh?"

"All thanks to your expert teachings," Saylee said to Ethan, who beamed proudly. "I'd better get along to Cherrygrove to heal him up. See you, Ethan. Bye, Marina!"

"Have a safe trip!" Ethan called, waving them off. Saylee and Chip waved back and set off.

"I wonder what 'is name's bein'?" Chip said, peering at the pokéball. "He's a bit of a weird one."

"I'm not keeping him, Chip," Saylee said. "I told you that I don't want innocent young Pokémon like you mixed up in this. I'll heal him, apologize for the trouble and let him go." Chip's face fell. "It's for the best, Chip."

"Alright…" Chip said, but he was downcast all the way to the Pokémon Centre.

{}

"Are you kiddin' me?" Steve said, stealing a bite of food off of Chip's plate. "Ow! Hot! Anyway, for food like this, I'm yours for life! Hey, you gonna eat that?"

"Help yourself," Saylee said, giving him the rest of her sandwich and watching in some awe. She was fairly sure that the little Sentret had eaten twice his own weight. "Where are you PUTTING all that?"

"Where else?" Steve said, slapping his huge tail on the table. "I swear, you let me go and I'll stalk you. I'm a real creeper when I want to be. BOO!" Chip gave a startled squeak and nearly fell off of the table. Steve laughed.

"You're not giving me a choice, are you, Steve?" Saylee said ruefully. "I guess I need to formally welcome you to the team. I'm Lyra, and this is Chip."

"Fab!" Steve said, flapping his tail. "I always wanted to train, with teammates. We need to build an awesome team, by the way. Like, super-awesome. And bigger, too," he added, looking thoughtfully at Chip. "I've seen teams. You need a bunch for teams."

"We'll see what we can do," Saylee promised with a resigned sigh. Still, part of her couldn't deny being excited by the prospect of training new Pokémon. They were so _cheerful_, so excited about forming teams and travelling. They could fight for fun because they'd never had to fight for survival like Rachel or Pedro.

Come to that, both of them had originally joined her because she'd fed them.

_But this isn't going to be like that, _she told herself sternly. _Johto is safe. It's not hungry and desperate. Neither of them are going to die. Until I find Team Rocket, everything will be fine._

{}

"Steve!" Saylee yelled as he suddenly keeled over in the midst of battle. "What's wrong?"

"I'm rather sorry, I'm afraid that's my poison," the opposing Weedle said, dropping her string attack. "I could see that he was stronger than me, so I thought, better safe than sorry, made sure to give him a poisonous nick. They sell wonderful antidotes for that in the market, I believe."

"They do," Saylee said, finding Steve's cut and spraying the remedy into it. "That was clever. I didn't even notice, and I've tr- met Weedle before."

"Yeah, that was sneaky, I'll give 'er that," Steve muttered woozily, sitting up. "Ahhh, that hits the spot. Hey, brains, how'd you like to join the team?"

"We're going t'be helpin' Lyra getting' to Goldenrod and the Lake of Rage!" Chip said brightly. "Want in?"

"Do I get a say in this?" Saylee interjected. "I _am_ your trainer."

"As I understand it, trainer is a term for one who assists others in becoming stronger," the Weedle says thoughtfully. "We have a personal assistant? How very nice. I'm Wendy. Charmed to meet you."

"I'm Steve," Steve said pompously. "Absolutely _enchanted_. And that's Chip, positively _bewitched_, and that's Lyra, who as a human I'm afraid is not very magical at all."

"Welcome aboard!" Chip said happily.

"I give up," Saylee said, pulling her hat down over her glasses.

{}

"Awww! Rick!"

"The clinic'll have him right as rain in a few minutes," Saylee said, watching the kid scoop up his Rattata and run off. "Good going, Steve."

"Oh, my," Wendy murmured. "After watching all of these battles today, I'm feeling somewhat… strange…" Saylee looked down to see that she was secreting golden-yellow silk.

"That means you're evolving!" Saylee said enthusiastically, kneeling down next to Wendy. "Bug-types do that young. Just relax and let it happen. You won't be able to move around much as a Kakuna, but when you hatch as a Beedrill…"

Wendy's eyes were closing sleepily as the cocoon covered her, but she could be seen to smile. "I shall _fly_," she murmured happily.

"How long'll that be takin'?" Chip asked curiously.

"Not too long," Saylee said, watching the hard shell weave around Wendy. "But until she hatches, she'll be _very_ vulnerable, so you two have to protect her extra carefully, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Steve declared. "We shall guard you with our lives!" he shouted at Wendy.

"…I can hear just fine…" Wendy murmured. Steve was watching her in fascination, but Chip was staring at Saylee. She hadn't been able to help flinching at Steve's declaration.

"Let's hope it won't come to that," she said softly.

{}

There was a loud flapping of wings as something snatched at Wendy. Saylee dropped to the ground, her whole body curved around the delicate load in her arms.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Steve yelled, springing into action, he just missed the target, but he distracted it long enough for Chip to tackle it out of the sky. Steve settled for pinning the struggling Pidgey instead.

"Calm down, calm down!" She squawked. "I wasn't _really_ going to eat it, I was just bored and you looked like fun to buzz. Will you get _off_ me?!"

"….Naaaaah," Steve said, leaning on her wings. She screeched indignantly.

"Let her go," Saylee ordered quickly. She felt close to panic. _Deep breaths_, she told herself. _Calm down. It's nothing._

"Decent of you," the Pidgey said, getting up and fluttering her wings huffily. "You look awful rattled. Look, I'm sorry, it was just a joke, calm down!"

"It was _not_ funny!" Chip said sharply. "The nerve!" His back flared up.

Wendy extended her poison pincers menacingly, evidently agreeing.

"Oh look, buggy has claws, I'm _soooo_ frightened," the Pidgey said sarcastically. "Do calm down. Nobody's hurt."

"You _could've_ been hurtin' her, mind," Chip admonished her. "Lyra says she's bein' right fragile right now."

Wendy waved her poison stings pointedly, trying to make the point that she wasn't _that_ fragile. Saylee hugged her close.

"She still could've hurt you very badly," she told Wendy gently.

"Hmmm… she _could, _couldn't she?" Steve said thoughtfully. "Hey, feathers, how'd you like to join the team?"

"Wait, what?" Saylee said in surprise. Chip stared at Steve in shock.

"You _jokin'_, Steve?" he asked.

"Hell no! This bird's got spunk!" Steve said, flicking his tail at the bird. She just snapped at it. "See? I'm Steve. What's your name?"

"Peggy," she said, ruffling her feathers.

"I bet she's tough," Steve continued, causing Peggy to preen. "She'd be useful, right?"

"Her evolved forms will be very powerful," Saylee said, looking at Peggy. Another spunky little Pidgey. _But I'm letting them all go later anyway, right?_

"Team?" Peggy asked curiously. "What sort of team?"

"Bodyguards!" Steve said excitedly. "Lyra's a powerless human, so we're seeing her safe to Goldenrod and stuff!"

"Yes, because you look _so_ powerful yourself," Peggy said sarcastically, but she looked intrigued nevertheless. "Are you training much? Growing stronger?"

"We came across Wendy just this morning and she's evolved already!" Steve said excitedly. "And I feel loads stronger, too!"

"They do say you can grow much faster with a human trainer and a team," Peggy said thoughtfully. "Very well. You ought to have _someone_ of some skill with you."

"But you're t'be promisin' not to eat Wendy," Chip put in.

"Yes, _fine_," Peggy sighed. "So long as _somebody_ feeds me, I promise not to eat any of you."

"Speaking of eating, it doesn't look like we're making it to Violet today," Saylee said, eying the sinking sun. "Who's up for making camp and having dinner now?"

"I am! I AM!" Steve said excitedly, bouncing up on his tail.

"O' course _you_ are," Chip sighed.

{}

"Thanks for roasting dinner," Saylee said to Chip, climbing down from the tree to which Wendy had affixed herself for the night. In penance for her opening prank, Peggy was roosting next to her to sit guard. Steve, after stuffing himself, had curled up under the base of the tree and was sleeping soundly on his own fluffy tail.

"Well, I was just flamin', and that's _easy_," Chip said shyly. "Say, Lyra? Why're you bein' so scared 'bout Wendy? She'll be fine, the whole point o' that shell is to be protectin' 'er."

"It can still be breached," Saylee said, unrolling her new sleeping bag. It was thicker and warmer than her old one, lined with the same thick wool that made her tights. Saylee took off the stiff denim jacket and rolled it into a pillow- maybe such use would soften it up.

She saw Chip fix his gaze on the silvery burn scars that flecked her arms, the largest on her shoulder itself in the shape of a flame. "I had a Kakuna before. She was ripped open because I didn't see a threat coming. I was fifteen. She was the first Pokémon I ever lost," she said quietly, too quietly for Wendy or Peggy to hear her up in the tree.

"You were havin' other Pokémon too, though, weren't you?" Chip said, curling up on her lap and letting his fires die down. "You were knowin' all 'bout Peggy without lookin' at the Pokédex."

"Yes, I've had a lot," Saylee admitted. "Lost more than a few." She reached into her bag and pulled out her dreamcatcher, draping it over a low branch. It was a complex, haphazard mess of strings and odd items. The centre of it seemed to be the bent and battered spoons. Two different golden coins dangled among the web, and a single pink feather with the end burned off. Two small woven bags hung at the bottom, each with something flat and hard in it. Chip's gaze drifted to one of the bags. Saylee knew that if she held that one to her ear, she'd hear the pulse of the earth, while the other would let her hear the roar of the sea. Even she wasn't entirely sure what either of them actually was.

"I've made a lot of mistakes, and learned a lot of expensive lessons," she said softly, her fingers trailing over the delicate feather. "The trick is in making good use of them, I guess."

"Kanto sounds scary," Chip said. Saylee patted his head.

"Don't worry," she said encouragingly. "This is Johto. Nothing bad's going to happen here."

_I won't let it._

{}

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_I should probably mention here that there's a language warning for the next chapter. To those of delicate sensibilities… why are you on this website? : x_

_I'm glad I wrote so much of this ahead of time… _Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask_ has taken over my brain. I can barely wrestle my mind away from Randall and Hersh long enough to do my NaNoWriMo, never mind more of this. But since I've already got 27 chapters down, that won't be a problem for about six months, posting at a weekly rate, anyway : x_

_Name: Steve. Species: Sentret. Nature: Quirky. Ability: Run Away. Level: 3_

_Name: Wendy. Species: Weedle. Nature: Careful. Ability: Swarm. Level: 4_

_Name: Peggy. Species: Pidgey. Nature: Sassy. Ability: Keen Eye. Level: 4_


	5. Chapter 4

_Pokémon: 4 Deaths: 0_

"What's this cave?" Saylee asked, peering into the gloom.

"Dark Cave? It's a funny place," Peggy said dismissively. "The Pokémon down there are a bunch of weirdos, if you ask me. I'd certainly go crazy if I lived in a dark hole in the ground."

"It's lookin' scary," Chip said, peering inside.

"My map says it goes all over Johto," Saylee said, stepping inside and squinting around curiously. "I wonder if— AAGH!"

She should've felt for her footing before ducking into the cave. Straightening up just as her foot found a drop caused her to overbalance, tumbling head over heels down a steep slope.

"Lyra! Wendy!" Chip called in a panic. "Are you okay?!"

"Wendy?" Saylee asked, running her hands over the Pokémon she'd managed to keep a grip on, hoping she hadn't crushed her. "Are you okay?"

Wendy had gripped Saylee's arm with her claws during the fall. She withdrew them hurriedly, eyes swivelling as she tried to see if she'd cut Saylee.

"You've got my arm tight, but no damage," Saylee assured her, showing her the uncut sleeve. "We're fine!" she called back up, now groping around for her hat. "Just a bit frightened, that's all. Peggy, can you come pick up Wendy so I can climb up?"

Wendy extended her claws indignantly, clearly not happy at the prospect of being carried by Peggy. Saylee heard a feathery rustle as Peggy landed near her.

"I need to be able to feel my way out, it's too dark for me to see," Saylee explained. "Can you see, Peggy?"

"Just about," Peggy said, flying over and gripping Wendy in her claws. "Cheer up, buggy, I'll have you out in a tic. I'm afraid you're a bit big for me to carry, Lyra."

"Don't worry about it," Saylee said, feeling around with both hands for her hat as soon as Peggy flew off. She grinned triumphantly when she found the soft cloth and pulled it down tightly onto her head, her grin fading as she did not meet an expected resistance to the hat brim.

"Bugger!" she exclaimed, patting her face to check and then running her hands over the ground around her to search. "I've lost my glasses!"

"Would that be these, moy love?"

Something cold and hard tapped her on the arm. Saylee gripped it and felt her glasses being held delicately in a small, rocky hand.

"Thank you!" Saylee said in relief, running her thumbs over the glass. It felt undamaged. She pulled her hat up and put her glasses back on. It didn't make a huge difference in the darkness, but it allowed her to notice that there was a bit of ambient light from the doorway, enough to make out the rough shape that to which the helpful hand was attached. "You're a Geodude, aren't you?"

"That oi am, moy love, that oi am," she said. "Oi was just nappin' over there when you come crashin' down an' these go bouncin' aff moy 'ead!"

"Sorry about that," Saylee said sheepishly. "I fell. I'll find my way back up." She stood up and started feeling at the slope that she'd fallen down.

"It's a moite treacherous that way, moy love," the Geodude said, taking her hand. "You follow Georgia now, oi'll see you out safe!"

"Thank you," Saylee said gratefully. "Thank you so much. That's a huge help!"

"Aw, t'ain't nothin'," Georgia said. "Oi sees in the dark jus' foine, oi does, an' you're not far aff the exit."

A couple of minutes later, Saylee clambered out into the sunlight. Georgia winced, holding up a hand to shield her eyes, unused to the light.

"Lyra! You're okay!" Chip said, glomping her around the knees.

"Thanks to Georgia here," Saylee said, smiling down at the helpful little Geodude. "Thank you so much, really."

"Awww, t'ain't nothin'," Georgia said modestly. "Jus' glad everyone's alroight."

"Thanks to you!" Steve said. "Hey, are you made of _rocks_? Badass!"

"That oi am," Georgia said, stretching out her arms. "You're a funny lot, you are. You a team, are you? Funny thing otherwoise, a Pidgey, a Kakuna an' a Sentret wi' a human an… sorry, moy love, I ain't never seen nothin' loike you," she added to Chip.

"I'm bein' a Cyndaquil," he offered.

"We're bodyguards for Lyra!" Steve said, bouncing. "She's our trainer!"

"She's going to train us to be _strong_," Peggy said, dropping Wendy into Saylee's arms. "And we're going to _travel_, not sit around in some dingy little cave."

"Now, ain't that somethin'," Georgia marvelled. "Oi've always wondered what it's loike outside, but it's rather scary wanderin' off on your own, ain't it?"

"You could be wanderin' off wi' us, if you'd like," Chip offered, glancing at Steve. "You were gonna be offerin' anyways, I figured I might as well do."

"If it's not too much trouble, moy love," Georgia said. Saylee sighed and shrugged. "Fancy that, me getting' out an' about in the sunloight!"

"Fancy that indeed," Saylee said, looking across her little team that was forming. It looked like it was going to be a busy trip.

Still, she supposed, she had time before she had to face Team Rocket. Maybe a little fun wouldn't be so bad.

{}

They reached Violet City at about midday. Saylee couldn't help marvelling at the place. It wasn't much larger than Viridian, but it was a fully functioning community. No ruined buildings, a free clinic like the one in Cherrygrove, and all of the children playing together outside of a building signposted as the "Pokémon Trainers' School". "School" was the word Professor Oak had used for the time he'd spent teaching them to read and write and count; here, they had a whole building just for that.

They were on an autumn break, but Ethan went five days out of seven the rest of the year. He complained often about having to make a trek to Violet— which only took a couple of hours if you didn't run into as many distractions and stop to train as often as Saylee did— and about how boring it was. Saylee was always telling him to appreciate his education and the fact that he and Marina could go so far safely.

At the clinic, however, they were let in on some bad news.

"I'm afraid the road to Goldenrod's been blocked by an odd copse of trees," the nurse said as she ran Saylee's Pokémon through the healing machine. "Nobody's been able to cut them down. It's very strange. Nobody's been able to get through for nearly two weeks. I was hoping to go shopping in Goldenrod, too…"

Saylee looked at the five pokéballs that the nurse handed back to her. She could use her portpad to get Chaz or Sheska to fly her over, but there was a great risk of being spotted, especially if this blockade was drawing a lot of attention. "Is there another way around?" she asked, pulling up her pokégear map.

"Well, you could try going through Azaela and the forest," the nurse said, pointing them out on the map. "It's quite a trek, though, and I wouldn't suggest it at all if you didn't already have Pokémon. You've got to go through the Union Cave just to get to Azaela and then through the forest. You can't get to the cave without special permission from Falkner, however. It's rather dangerous."

"Falkner?" Saylee asked. The name sounded familiar, but it took her a moment to place it. "Oh… the guy that runs the training dojo for flying-types here?"

"Yes, it's just across the road from the school," the nurse said. "He inherited it from his father, you see. He'll want to test that you're a capable trainer before he lets you go to Union Cave."

"Fair enough," Saylee said, pocketing her Pokémon. "Can I have directions to the Sprout Tower? I'd like to train there first…"

{}

"I have failed in my training," Jin said dejectedly, scooping up his fallen Bellsprout. "Come, Bartholomew, we must meditate upon this."

_Some warrior monks,_ Saylee thought as another monk approached, looking to spar. _You've trained your whole life for a Bellsprout that Steve could take out that easily? I'd hate to see what would happen if I'd used Chip…_

The Tower was infested with Rattata too, which the "warrior" monks clearly weren't doing a particularly thorough job of keeping out. Saylee ended up catching a particularly persistent one named Rei just to get her to leave them alone. Saylee sent Rei back to Vera to care for; as an ex-Rocket, she was very used to caring for a Rattata. Saylee wasn't worried about how Rei would fare under Vera's care. She'd seen Vera help look after the Pokémon coming through Professor Elm's lab in the past few months, and she'd been very dedicated to learning to care for all of them properly. When she'd finally allowed herself to acknowledge what she'd been doing for Team Rocket, her guilt complex had become overpowering.

Wendy sat comfortably in Saylee's arms, watching the battles closely. She was growing heavier as they ascended through the sparring floors. Bug-types evolved young and quickly when exposed to a lot of combat exertion, and Sprout Tower, despite the weak monks, was bursting with it.

"So bein' a hoigher level monk means you train Hoothoot _an'_ Bellsprout?" Georgia asked after taking out one of the birds in question after Peggy blew away another Bellsprout. Hoothoot wasn't a Pokémon that Saylee was familiar with, and she'd set Georgia on it solely on the basis that it was clearly a flying-type; she'd needed the Pokédex to warn her that they tended to have psychic powers.

"Just focus on those Hoothoot and let Chip and Peggy worry about the Bellsprout," Saylee told Georgia. "Right, who's next?"

"Miss, you have bested all of the green-belt monks in single combat," one of the monks said politely. "This way to meet our elder and master. He is currently meeting with a boy of extreme promise."

As they approached the sliding door to the master's room, however, shouting could be heard from within.

"Fuck you! You're all weak! Why the hell would I want to train with _you_?!"

"Lyra," Chip said urgently, "in't that—"

Saylee nodded, pushing aside the door and running into the core room of the temple.

"You have a lot of anger that you cannot control, young man," the elder said patiently to Silver.

"Tell me something I _don't_ know," Tyra muttered. She was standing by Silver's side as the two of them stood before a wrinkled old man in a more thickly-layered monks' robe. Silver looked angry, the old man somewhat sad.

"Tyra!" Chip called happily. "We found you!"

"Oh, great, just what I _don't_ need," Tyra snapped. "And there's _more_ of you now. Bloody fantastic."

"Silver," Saylee said, ignoring Tyra for now, "what are you doing here? Where are you and Tyra going?"

"Somewhere that isn't full of _weaklings_!" Silver snapped, returning Tyra and hopping out of a window.

"This is the fourth floor!" the monk that had led Saylee in yelled. Saylee shoved Wendy into his arms and ran over to the window in a panic. She was just in time to see Silver shimmy his way down the various shingled roofs and land safely at the bottom.

"Jammy little—" she muttered under her breath. "It's okay," she reassured the worried monk, going to retrieve Wendy. "He climbed down safely."

"I see…" the elder said calmly. "I had hoped that our order could be of help to that boy's troubled soul, but alas, it is not to be."

"Master, this girl is also of great talent," the monk said. "I have brought her to meet with you and receive your blessing and that of the great Bellsprout."

"Hmmm," the elder said, eying Saylee critically. "What is your name, girl?"

"Lyra," Saylee said. Lying to the serene old man was a little uncomfortable, and the local belief was that anyone who lied within the temple would be cursed by the Great Bellsprout. Saylee glanced back at the great thick beam that ran up the centre of the temple, but there was no sign of it coming to crush her. "Of New Bark Town."

"Hmm. Very well." Saylee got the distinct impression that she had not been believed. "I will test her myself, first. Bor?"

"Aye, Master?" a tall Bellsprout said, unfolding himself from a meditative position.

"You want this, Peggy?" Saylee asked.

"Second verse, same as the first," the Pidgey said, flying forward and unleashing a powerful gust of wind that knocked Bor off of his roots.

"Woo!" Steve cheered. "You go!"

After a few such passed, the elder motioned for the clearly outmatched Bor to retreat. "I call on you, Horatio."

"And I attend." A Hoothoot flapped down from the rafters. Peggy and Steve started sniggering at the somewhat antiquated exchanges. "Who is to be my foe?"

"That'll be you, Georgia," Saylee said to the rocky Pokémon.

"Alroight then, moy love," Georgia said, immediately flinging herself at Horatio in a heavy tackle. He dodged quickly, his eyes beginning to glow. The pupils rolled as he started to hypnotize Georgia.

Georgia tackled him out, completely unaffected.

"It's an interesting thing," Saylee mused aloud. "Georgia hasn't accustomed too badly to moving around in the sunlight, but the fact is she's spent almost her whole life underground. She can't see a thing in strong sunlight, or when things glow like that."

"I see," the elder said with a nod. "You have found an advantage in weakness."

Saylee pushed her glasses up her nose. "I don't believe in weakness. Everyone has strengths, and anybody can be strong." She looked down at Chip. "Right?"

"Uh-huh," Chip agreed, stepping forward to meet their last opponent, another Bellsprout.

"Vine whip, Benjiro," the Elder commanded. Long vines wrapped around Chip, holding him fast.

"Mistake," Saylee said as Chip flared up his back, severing the vines. "Now ember!"

Chip blasted a mouthful of hot embers at the unfortunate Benjiro. "We won!" he said excitedly, turning to Saylee. "Hey, what's bein' wrong wi' Wendy?"

Wendy's shell was heavy, warm and shaking, and suddenly it _cracked_ down the middle. Two huge white wings folded out of it.

"She's made it!" Saylee yelped happily, watching Wendy first flap her wings and rise into the air. "She's a Beedrill!"

Wendy looked down at her new black-and-yellow body, her new arms and legs, and the huge, vicious silver stingers at the end of her top limbs.

Her shell crumbled off of Saylee's arms and into dust.

"Your Pokémon fight with united hearts," the Elder said, sounding pleased. "You share your energy with one another. It is a wonderful thing, and is why your Kakuna has grown so fast. Hearts like yours bring light to the darkness."

"I'm most certainly _not_ going to eat you now," Peggy said, flying around Wendy, who was much bigger than her now.

"Don't talk about eating, you're making me hungry!" Steve wailed.

"Always thinking with your stomach," Peggy muttered. "Just like a Sentret."

"I appreciate your blessing," Saylee said, bowing politely to the Elder who was patiently watching them squabble. "Now, I guess I'd better feed these guys…"

"Here," the Elder said, handing her a flat green leaf. "Go with the blessings of the Great Bellsprout."

"Thank you," Saylee said, slipping the leaf into the pocket with her dreamcatcher. She didn't know if the leaf had any actual power, but one never knows, and she needed all the luck she could get.

{}

"You know, I would _love_ to train like that," Peggy said, watching Saylee carefully cut little holes into the leaf so she could thread it into her dreamcatcher. "You know, focused, dedicated… only without sucking."

"I hear you," Steve said. "I would've gone to train with those monks a long time ago if they were any better at it…"

"Well, I'd say their focus is more on meditation and nature worship than battle anyway," Saylee said, picking up the corner strings of her dreamcatcher and dangling the web of trinkets and mementoes in the air. "You might find eternal peace, but I don't know if you'd evolve." _Not that eternal peace sounds like a bad idea…_

"I, personally, would much rather travel," Wendy said. She was flying in large, lazy loops in the air. "I have wings now, and I should quite like to spread them."

"That sounds noice, that does," Georgia said, watching her fly around. "Oi'd quite loike to travel moiself, o'course. It's noice, travellin' with others."

"You were travellin' from Kanto, right?" Chip said to Saylee. She nodded.

"I travelled with my mother and my big brother," she said, which wasn't exactly a lie, just outdated. "He left awhile ago and didn't come back, though."

"That sucks," Steve said, frowning. "What was his name?"

"Red," Saylee said, watching the leaf spin slightly on its string. "His name is Red."

{}

{}

_Sorry it's a day late… life is extremely busy right now XP More accents! Georgia's got a bit of a Wess Coun'ree accent going on. Some people have asked about Chip's… it's a watered-down rendition of a specific Irish accent spoken by a couple of people that I know. Their accent is my favourite thing in the world and I could listen to them talk forever, so I just had to give it to my partner here :)_

_Name: Georgia. Species: Geodude. Nature: Modest. Ability: Sturdy. Level: 4 _

_Name: Rei. Species: Rattata. Nature: Brave. Ability: Guts. Level: 3_


	6. Chapter 5

_Pokémon: 6 Deaths: 0_

When Saylee got to the dojo, she was a little frustrated to learn that Falkner was away and wouldn't be back until lunchtime, but at least that gave her a little time that morning to write home. She had to wonder what Chaz and the others would think of her current team. _Chaz'll probably be happy to hear that Wendy evolved okay. After all, he was there when Wilma died, too…_

She was sitting in the inn's airy canteen and finishing her letter when a shadow briefly crossed the sun. Saylee looked out of the window to see what was unmistakeably a Pidgeot circling down towards the dojo. She sent the letter through the portpad and headed out to the dojo herself to organize a battle.

"Falkner's back," she said, letting out her Pokémon. "Ready for battle?"

"Bring it on," Chip said, flaring up his back. Saylee let him and Steve battle the preliminary trainers, dojo students who were testing if she was worth Falkner's time. The dojo was organized in the traditional Johto style, novices and weaker pupils training near the door and the more advanced acolytes further back into the dojo. The building itself was hardly traditional, however. The trainers also fought across broad platforms of various heights, set against a long staircase that ran against the dojo wall; the first trainer Saylee fought was barely six feet off the ground, but the platform at the back of the room must have been twenty-five feet up. The ceiling at the back was open, as well, allowing flying-types to soar in and out of the room.

A blue-haired young man in a short-legged traditional _hakama_ outfit with a blue jacket was waiting on top of the tallest podium, helping the Pidgeotto on his arm groom its crest. "I'm Falkner. Are you Lyra?"

"I am," Saylee said.

He bowed to her, and she nodded back, unsure what the actual etiquette for the dojo was. She'd mostly spent the last two months looking for links to Team Rocket; once she'd independently confirmed that Falkner had no criminal connections, she'd lost interest in him and his dojo. "I need your permission to get to Union Cave."

"I see," Falkner said with a nod. "You are here to be tested. Fine." He stretched out his other arm and a Pidgey came down to roost on it. "Two Pokémon, no switching until one is unable to battle. Just a friendly bout. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Saylee said, nodding to Georgia. "You're up first, Georgia."

"Quick attack, Peo!" Falkner ordered. His Pidgey flew almost invisibly fast towards Georgia, slamming off her. Georgia rocked slightly, but wasn't damaged.

"Tackle!" Saylee ordered. Georgia grinned and slammed herself into Peo. She was much slower, but her body was a solid chunk of living stone. They struck at each other again, and Peo collapsed while Georgia didn't have a scratch.

"Okay…" Falkner said with a nod, returning Peo. "Pawel! Gust!" His Pidgeotto flew from Falkner's arm, flapping his broad wings at Georgia.

Saylee had to hang onto her hat, but Georgia was unmoved by the gale. Peggy, however, was watching Pawel with shining eyes.

"_Wow_," she breathed, watching him pull back and soar up to the ceiling, too high for Georgia to tackle him. "Do you think _I _could fly like that someday?"

"If you train hard," Saylee promised, giving Peggy a smile before turning her attention back to the battle. "Rock throw!"

Georgia produced a handful of small stones from somewhere and began flinging them hard at Pawel. Pawel was fast, and several stones missed and went skittering over the edge of the platform, but when one hit, he was he was knocked out of the sky. Georgia was able to tackle him once he was on the ground, finishing it.

"Very good," Falkner said, returning Pawel to his pokéball. "You'll be fine in the Union Cave. Here, show this to the gatekeeper and he'll let you through." He stepped forwards with his hand outstretched. "It's my emblem, the Zephyr."

"Thank you," Saylee said in relief, turning the flat, arrow-shaped emblem pin over and then attaching it to her bag strap. It was very similar to the emblems she'd sometimes received in Kanto, symbols of respect and loyalty. Amazing what a little shard of metal could do…

"Do you only train birds?" Peggy asked, fluttering over to Falkner.

"I'm an expert in them," Falkner said, stroking Peggy's beak with a smile. "Nobody trains better birds than I do. I have much more powerful birds, by the way," he added to Saylee, "but Peo and Pawel are currently about the strength of the Pokémon that live in and around the cave. If you can take them out that easily, you'll have no trouble with the wild Pokémon down there."

"Could you train _me_ to be really strong?" Peggy asked. Falkner looked from her to Saylee.

"Don't you have a trainer already?" he said, nodding at Saylee.

"Yes, but you're the _expert_," Peggy said worshipfully.

"I'm just a new trainer, anyway," Saylee said. "I don't know that much about Pokémon. If you want to be your best, Peggy, you might be best off here…"

"Well, if it's alright with you, I'd be glad to take her under my wing, so to speak," Falkner laughed. "She's in very good condition, though. You've cared for her very well."

"You're really going to stay here, Peggy?" Steve said, looking downcast. "On your own?"

"Well, there are other birds here…" Peggy said, but she was looking a little nervous about leaving on her own.

"If you're feelin' lonely, moy love, one o' us could stay wi' you," Georgia said, looking at Chip and Steve. "Roight?"

"Would it be alright if Steve stayed on with me?" Peggy asked Falkner.

"My specialty is flying-types, but I don't really see why not," Falkner said with a shrug. "If you're happiest training together…"

"Me? Are you sure?" Steve said in surprise.

"You don't have to if you don't want to, I'm sure," Peggy said quickly. Steve shook his head.

"No, I'm happy to, if you want me to train with you!" he said just as quickly. "We ought to train together, after all, and become super-tough! Then we can catch up with Chip and Lyra and we'll be way stronger than them!"

"Hah! Oi bet oi can get twoice as strong as you," Georgia teased him.

"I'll show you!" Steve declared.

"Alright, then," Saylee said, letting Wendy out so she could say her goodbyes and scooping up Steve. "Thanks for taking them on, Falkner. I'd better warn you, Steve can probably eat more than your entire gym put together."

"That's fine, the rest of us eat like birds," Falkner laughed. Saylee gave Steve a hug goodbye and handed him to Falkner.

"Be good and train hard, both of you," Saylee said, stroking Peggy's beak. "I know you'll both be amazing."

"Thanks," Peggy said, looking up at Wendy. "Sorry for trying to eat you, buggy."

"No bother… tailfeather," Wendy said. Peggy flicked her tail at Wendy.

"You three look after Lyra, got it?" Steve said. "This is my last command as team leader!"

"Who was makin' _you_ team leader in the first place, anyways?" Chip muttered.

{}

After they'd all said their goodbyes, Saylee and her remaining three Pokémon left the dojo, ready to try and get to the cave before the end of the day.

"Funny how you can know someone for only a few days and miss them so soon, isn't it?" Wendy mused.

"Roight enough," Georgia said. "Oi'm sure we'll see 'em again soon enough…"

The two wandered on ahead, chattering. Chip nudged Saylee's ankle, so she leaned down to scoop him up into her arms. "Do you think I should've made them stay with us? They wanted to stay here…"

"I know they does," Chip said quietly. "I just been wonderin' if _you _were wantin' 'em t'stay wi' us. You were never wantin' t'be catchin' 'em to start with. You weren't even wantin' t'be bringin' me, to start…"

"For what it's worth, I'm glad I did," Saylee said softly, giving him a cuddle. "I'd just rather see them leave knowing they're going to be happy, rather than…"

"Lee! I found you!"

Saylee froze at the sound of the familiar little voice. No, no way, it _couldn't_ be…

She turned and crouched, setting Chip onto the ground just in time to catch the rotund little Pokémon that ran into her arms. "Tobias!" she gasped, holding him up. Yes, it _was_ Tobias, the baby Pokémon that she had hatched in the Sevii Islands, Carrie and Hernan's adopted son. He was wearing the distinctive shell bell necklace that Hernan had found on the Pallet beach and given to him. "What on earth are you doing here?!"

"I got sent to Vera!" Tobias said brightly. "She was gonna put me in my ball again, but I _hate _that, so I ran off to find you! I'm glad I found you, a creepy lady's been _chasing_ me…"

"Who is this child?" Wendy asked, buzzing around Tobias curiously.

"I'll explain everything somewhere more private…" Saylee muttered, scooping up Tobias and making a break for the route south. She didn't quite make it.

"Hey, there's my friend Lyra! LYRA!"

"Hi Ethan!" Saylee said, pasting on a smile. "My name here is Lyra," she muttered to Tobias between her teeth before waving to Ethan. "What are you doing here?"

"We wanted to see how you were, Lyra," Marina said, hurrying over to Saylee in the wake of her young trainer. For some reason, they were being followed by a woman in a beautiful red kimono, heavily layered and folded with a deep black _obi_ sash. She was wearing a traditional style of makeup too, with her cheeks painted pale and her lips bright red, and her hair was tied up into a complex and heavy-looking arrangement of rolls and curls.

"I met this pretty lady outside of the school!" Ethan said excitedly. "She said she's looking for a special Pokémon!"

"I found him," the lady said with a gentle smile at Tobias. "So you raise a Togepi, bringer of joy?"

"Umm… I guess so?" Saylee said, looking down at Tobias. She'd never known before just what kind of Pokémon he was.

"A _Togepi_?" Ethan said excitedly. "My mum told me a story about them! They're supposed to protect lost children and bring happiness to people!"

"I can do magic," Tobias said proudly, waggling his little hands. Saylee grabbed one and held it still. Metronome was not the most controllable or dependable power.

"It takes a special kind of person to raise a Togepi well," the lady said, giving Tobias a pat on the head. "Do take good care of him. Thank you for assisting me in my search, Ethan. Take care. You too, Marina." With that, she wandered off.

"Thanks for coming out to see me, Ethan," Saylee said with a smile. "Guess what? I beat the dojo master, Falkner!"

"Whoa!" Ethan gasped. "Already? Cool!"

"You must be a very talented trainer," Marina said brightly. "You've taken to it so quickly!"

"Thanks," Saylee said, stepping away. "We've got to go south now. I'm afraid it's dangerous, so we'll have to say goodbye here. You go home safe, okay?"

"Awww…" Ethan looked downcast, but as ever, brightened right back up again. "A trainer as tough as you'll be fine, Lyra!"

"Have a safe trip!" Marina said, waving her little paws as Saylee rushed off with Tobias in her arms and a confused Chip, Wendy and Georgia trailing in her wake.

As soon as she was out of sight, Saylee left the path and ducked between the trees. Chip, Wendy and Georgia all stared expectantly at her as she sighed heavily, sank to her knees, and set Tobias on the ground.

"You goin' to explain that choild now, moy love?" Georgia asked, folding her arms and looking from Saylee to Tobias.

"Yes, Lyra, what _is_ going on?" Wendy asked. Tobias looked up at Saylee with a frown.

"Lee, who's all this?" he said, pointing at the others.

"Don't point, that's rude," Saylee said. "Everyone, this is Tobias, somebody I know from back in Kanto… Toby, this is Chip, Wendy and Georgia. Why are you here, Toby?"

"Mummy and Daddy thought I'd be safer out here for a while," he said. "They don't know what burned down the forest…"

"…And I hear that you keep running off to fight wild Pokémon anyway," Saylee chastised him, "even though your parents train with you every day."

"I wanna get strong! Just as strong as them!" Tobias argued. "Mummy and Daddy are both great warriors! I wanna travel with you and get strong like them! Here," he said, pulling a letter out of his shell. "Mummy got Professor Oak to write that for you…"

Saylee read through the letter from Carrie. Tobias' restlessness and constant running off was getting outright dangerous, and after hearing about how relatively safe Johto was, she and Hernan had agreed to let him go on ahead to join Saylee. They would be joining Saylee soon themselves, anyway, just as soon as she found Team Rocket's main base.

"Can I stay, Lee, _please_?" Tobias begged. "Can I can I can I? Mummy and Daddy said it's okay!"

"Only if you're not going to run off," Saylee said sternly. "I don't know Johto, Toby. If you run off, I might not be able to find you. How would I ever face your parents if anything happened to you?"

"I promise!" Toby said excitedly. "I'll be good! I just wanna be a big strong warrior like Mummy and Daddy before I see them again!"

"Who _are_ his parents?" Wendy asked. "How did you not know that this little one is a Togepi if you know his parents?"

"His parents are a Marowak and a Hitmonchan that I know," Saylee said. "They adopted him, and they… might be coming to visit soon. I'd like to see them again, so I hope they are."

"For someone who ain't trained Pokémon afore, you sure do know some interestin' ones," Georgia commented. Saylee nodded, glancing warningly at Tobias, but the little one had obviously already been told about the need to keep a low profile in case there were Rockets about. Saylee wondered about having him at all, but the only Rockets who'd seen her with him and weren't locked up were Vera and Proton. She had to wonder about that odd, beautiful lady that had been with Ethan in Violet City. She'd been _looking _for Tobias…

"Wendy, Georgia, you both live near Violet," Saylee said. "That lady that was with Ethan… have you ever seen her before?"

"Oi almost never been out of moy cave before," Georgia said with a shrug. "Ain't never seen a human like 'er before."

"I don't go up to Violet much," Wendy said, "but I do believe that I have seen females of that pattern at Mr Pokémon's before. Perhaps they know him?"

"Perhaps…" Just because Sir Geoffrey knew the woman didn't make her safe. The older gentleman was not fond of Team Rocket's interference with Pokémon, but as Frederick had pointed out, he wasn't that perceptive when it came to humans. If the woman was secretly a Rocket agent, he probably wouldn't notice, and if they were friends she'd have free access to his vast store of knowledge about Pokémon.

Saylee had to pray that Sir Geoffrey hadn't mentioned her presence to the strange woman and that she was just being paranoid. She'd begged him to keep mum, and he'd agreed pleasantly enough, but still…

"…be goin' to Goldenrod, Lyra says, an' probably the Lake o' Rage too…"

"Lake of Rage? That sounds scary!" Tobias said. "Lee? Why are we going to a scary place?"

"It's not actually scary," Saylee promised him. "I wouldn't take you anywhere dangerous."

"Whoy's he call you Lee, then?" Georgia asked. "That a nickname?"

"I suppose," Saylee said with a smile. "When he was learning to talk, he couldn't pronounce my name. He called me Lee instead."

"I still do, 'cause you're Lee," Tobias insisted.

"I kinda like it," Chip said. "Alright if I be callin' you Lee too?"

"Of course, if you like," Saylee said, patting his head. "Lee" could conceivably enough be a babyish nickname for "Lyra", after all. She just had to hope that her identity hadn't already reached the eyes and ears of Team Rocket.

{}

"Get away! Go on, get!"

"Ow!" Saylee yelped as something small and hard hit her arm, jerking her awake. She curled around Tobias to protect him, fearing that they were under attack. She could feel Chip climbing over her sleeping bag.

"Watch out, Georgia!" He yelled. "You was hitin' Lee there!"

"Sorry, moy love," Georgia said, "but this little begger was sneakin' up on 'er…"

"Ow! Aight, aight, I'm movin', leave off!"

Saylee sat up at the angry little female voice. It didn't sound like anything big or dangerous, more like a little girl.

She initially looked like a little bundle of yellow fluff, running around to dodge Georgia's rock throw. She had a shiny, bulbous orange tail and a little blue face and legs. Saylee's Pokédex told her that it was a Mareep, an electric Pokémon from whose wool Saylee's tights and sleeping bag were woven.

"Georgia, hold it, she's just little," Saylee said quickly. "What are you doing here, sweetie? Are you on your own? Don't Mareep live in flocks?"

"Aye," the little Mareep said, watching Georgia nervously. "I'm travellin' tae Olivine, but. Gaunnae train wi' ma Maw there tae be a ligh'ouse keeper. Everyin thinks I'm too wee t'dae it, but I'll show 'em!" She shuffled her feet bashfully. "But I am a tiny wee bit lonely wi'out ma brers an' sisters…"

"My sleeping bag has Mareep wool in it," Saylee said, unzipping herself and shivering a little in the chilly morning air. "Were you drawn to that?"

"…aye," the little Mareep admitted. "Sorry 'bout that. I'll be movin' on the now tae Union Cave…"

"We're going to Union Cave too!" Tobias said brightly. "Lee, we're going the same way as her, can't she travel with us? Please? She'll be all lonely otherwise! And she's all fluffy, too!" He ran over to the little Mareep, reaching up for her wool and falling on his butt when he got zapped.

"Sorry! Sorry," she said nervously as Tobias reached up again. This time, he managed to snuggle her soft wool safely, giggling happily. "Happens sometimes… sorry, wee yin."

"It tickles!" Tobias said happily. "And now it's soft!" He climbed up onto her back, bouncing happily in the thick wool. "I'm Toby, an' that's Lee an' Wendy an' Georgia an' Chip! What's your name?"

"Mary," she said, looking around. "Would it… really be 'kay fer me tae travel wi' you? 'Least through the cave?"

"We might as well," Saylee said, carefully reaching out to stroke Mary's head, not touching the wool lest she get zapped by the huge amount of static electricity that built up in Mareep wool. How Tobias was snuggled safely into Mary's wool was beyond her; perhaps he'd inherited some resistance from Carrie. The two weren't blood related, but Tobias was a very odd little creature with an incredible ability to pick things up from others.

"It's always nice to meet new people, isn't it?" Wendy said happily to Georgia. Georgia crossed her arms, watching Saylee start reading up on Mary in her Pokédex.

"That it is," she agreed. "Funny 'ow Lee's seein' it that way all o' a sudden, ain't it?"

"What do you mean by that?" Wendy asked in surprise.

"Oi mean, she weren't wantin' ta take any of us on, an' all of a sudden the little one gets here an' she's all for new folk," Georgia said. "What's she so scared of?"

"Now, you can't think a sweet girl like Lee means any harm," Wendy chastised her.

"No, oi don't," Georgia agreed. "Oi'm just sayin' that what she means an' what 'appens don't seem to agree that much. An' she's 'idin' things from us, too. You know she is."

"Yes, well…" Wendy glanced at Tobias. "I know why you're suspicious, Georgia, but Lee seems like a good person."

"Never said she weren't," Georgia said placidly.

"Besides, I'm sure everything will become clear in time."

"That's what oi'm afraid of."

{}

{}

_I got lucky in that the Togepi egg I hatched was the same gender and nature as the one I hatched at the end of FR. So here's a little carryover character :D Also, I adore Mareep, so you would not believe my happiness when I caught Mary :) My love for Mareep is why she has a Scottish accent._

_Name: Tobias. Species: Togepi. Nature: Serious. Ability: Serene Grace. Level: 1_

_Name: Mary. Species: Mareep. Nature: Careful. Ability: Static. Level: 6_

_Name: Jay. Species: Unown. Nature: Bold. Ability: Levitate. Level: 5_

_I left out mentioning Jay's capture because, frankly, unless he's the last Pokémon I have left alive, I am not going to use him. Unown suck just that bad. Their gimmick is cute, but beyond that… if I ever have a use for that gimmick, he may suddenly appear XD_

_By the way, Peggy and Steve are alive. I've had no deaths yet. It was just that while I had fun coming up with their characters, in the end I just decided that I didn't want a Sentret or a Pidgey on my team long-term. So I boxed them. If I decide I want them back in later, they'll reappear. Unlike Elric, though, they didn't die ingame. I just didn't want them on the team._


	7. Chapter 6

_Pokémon: 9 Deaths: 0_

"Good afternoon, young lady! Care for a little snack?"

Saylee stepped between her Pokémon and the vendor dragging his covered cart towards her. They'd been training all day to try and raise Tobias and Mary's power levels to be comparable to those of Chip, Georgia and Wendy, and everyone was pretty tired.

The man's patter reminded Saylee of the sleazy vendor that had sold Miranda to her. Not that she regretted meeting Miranda, but that the man had been selling off live Magikarp had unnerved her a little, especially since she strongly suspected that he was selling them to eat. "Snack?" she said suspiciously.

"Sure! You look hungry," the man schmoozed. "And have I got a treat for you! Sweetest snack in all of Johto! He reached under his cart cover and pulled out something long and pink. "Finest high-quality Slowpoketail, fresh today!"

"Slowpoketail?" Chip asked. Saylee took the pink tail from the man and squeezed it gently. She'd felt something exactly like it once before—attached to a Slowpoke.

"Is this _genuine_?" she asked slowly. "From a _real_ Slowpoke?"

"Of course it is!" the man insisted, mistaking her horror for fear of buying an inferior product. "Fresh off a living Slowpoke just this morning, and it's a good one too, let me tell you, produces some of the tastiest tails in—gnk!"

Saylee kicked him hard, landing a critical hit. He slumped over, whimpering, and suddenly found two silver stingers at his neck.

"You are truly cutting these tails off of living Slowpoke?" Wendy said in disgust.

"They grow right back, and it's not like the stupid things feel it!" the man croaked. "Anyway, _I'm_ not cutting anything! I just sell the tails! I get them from a guy near Azaela and that's all, I swear!"

"You ain't really thinkin' that makes it any better, are you?" Georgia said menacingly, cracking her knuckles.

"Wendy, let him go and go find the police in Violet," Saylee ordered. "Georgia, you hold onto him until she gets back." Wendy nodded and flitted back off towards Violet.

"Come on, don't get the cops involved!" the man cried as Georgia grabbed him into a painful-looking armlock. "I just sell stuff, that's not illegal!"

"You're still involved in an abominable trade, even if you don't hold the knife yourself," Saylee said, revolted. "You are not going _anywhere_. Now, who's the man who gives you the tails?"

"I dunno! Just a bloke!" the man said, his salesman's tones draining in his panic. "Got kind of a psycho look in his eye, if you ask me. Trust me, if this guy came to you with a job you wouldn't tell him to sod off for fear of getting stabbed yourself!"

"But you always meet him near Azaela Town, right?" Saylee asked.

"Jus' on the other side a' this cave, in't it?" Mary asked. "Are we gaunnae check it oot?"

"O' course we are!" Chip said. "We'll not be sittin' back an' lettin' this happen, are we?"

"No," Saylee said, scanning the skies for Wendy's return. _It never goes smooth, does it? Why doesn't it ever just go smooth…_

{}

Union Cave wasn't too dark, especially with the bulb on Mary's tail lighting the way, but it _was_ very damp. Water was constantly dripping from random stalactites and pooling on the ground. Saylee was continually trying to hop around deep puddles and banging her toes off of stalagmites. Chip had hidden under Saylee's hat when the first drop of water hit him, and she could feel him shiver every time her hat was dripped on. Georgia, despite being a cave-dweller herself, also looked unhappy in the damp environment, and Wendy kept flitting back and forth to avoid the dripping. Tobias seemed quite happy riding along in Mary's wool.

"Good thing this place is small, ain't it, moy love?" Georgia said to Wendy. "We'll be out roight soon…"

Saylee shrieked as her hat was suddenly knocked off by a flurry of blue wings. She flung her hands to her head to catch Chip before he was thrown off too, dropping to her knees next to Mary and Tobias. She looked up and saw a flock of Zubat circling them and sniggering.

"That wasn't nice!" Tobias shouted, waving his arms. "Don't be bad!"

His tiny hands glowed brilliant white. A huge blast of fire appeared from nowhere and smashed into the flock, sending scorched rock and Zubat raining down.

"…run run RUN!" Saylee screamed, pushing Mary and Georgia forwards as rocks continued to fall. "Toby, what did you DO?!"

"I saw Chaz do it!" Tobias said, clinging onto Mary's wool and giggling as they fled the collapsing cave.

"Open air!" Mary yelled, diving out of the cave. "'Mon!"

"Great!" Saylee said, following her out onto the grass. The second she reached the outside, however, Chip yelled and tried to hide inside her jacket.

"Raaaiiin!" he cried, curling up. Saylee returned him to his pokéball immediately. He wasn't as vulnerable to rain as Chaz was, but it still wouldn't do him any good. She then returned Georgia, who looked just as unhappy in the heavy rain.

"Ew," Tobias complained, looking up at the sky. "Mary, get in out of the rain! We can't go outside!"

"We can, actually," Saylee said, reaching a hand out into the rain and bringing back a handful of drops to taste carefully. It tasted clean and clear, if freezing cold. "The water here isn't poisoned, Toby. We can go out in the rain and it won't be dangerous… just uncomfortable." She picked him up and returned Mary, who was looking exceedingly uncomfortable with rain dripping into her wool and causing random sparks to zap the air.

"Your hat, Lee," Wendy said, reaching out one of her stingers with the huge white hat draped on it.

"Thank you, Wendy," Saylee said, pulling the hat over her already soaked hair.

"What on earth happened in there?" Wendy asked, looking back at the cave. Parts of the cave were still glowing with fire.

"I blew up the cave!" Tobias said brightly.

"Don't sound proud of that," Saylee chastised him, returning Wendy. It didn't look easy or comfortable to fly in the rain, at least not at the pace that Wendy had to buzz her wings at.

"Do I have to go away too?" Tobias complained. Saylee nodded.

"There's no need for you to get soaked too," she said, putting him away. She turned up her coat collar, pulled down the brim of her hat, and ran out into the deluge.

She only ran for a little ways. There was a path from the cave, but it was a mess of slick mud and slippery fallen leaves. She jogged along the grass by the path for a while, but eventually slowed down to a walk, finding herself enjoying the rain. It even _smelled_ clean.

The mountains that hemmed in Kanto from three directions made it a microclimate, both meteorologically and socio-politically. During the civil war, a major assault by water Pokémon had been stopped by pouring vast amounts of toxins into the water. Saylee wondered who had come up with _that_ genius idea. She suspected that whoever it was had an IQ lower than their age because the knock-on effects had been both predictable and horrendous. The toxins had gotten into the clouds, and the winds off the sea had blown it all back over Kanto, from where acid rain poured down into the rivers and the earth. Saylee could remember, when she was a small child, having to run for cover whenever it rained because the water burned to the touch. Of recent years it merely smelled foul and made you ill if you got any in your mouth. More than a few children of an age with Saylee, growing up in that environment, had died that way. Without water filters, they all would have died years ago.

Johto was different. The water didn't churn up Grimer and Muk. Water Pokémon other than Tentacool could live in the rivers and sea. The grass and many of the trees were green, and the rest of the trees were bright colours of orange and yellow. Even as the leaves died for the winter, they were beautiful. The plants back in Kanto were all a washed-out grey.

Saylee was really enjoying the rain when she spotted something odd amidst the green and brown— a splash of bright pink.

A little round, pink Pokémon was lying in the mud. It had two long, torn green leaves draped over it. It was also bleeding heavily. Saylee's Pokédex told her that it was a Hoppip, a grass-type, which explained the leaves and why it was bleeding golden-red sap.

"Hello?" Saylee said, kneeling in the mud next to it. "Can you hear me? What happened? Hello?"

"…N-not… weak…" the little Hoppip murmured quietly. "Not… they said… useless… _not_…"

"It's okay, sweetie," Saylee said, digging into her bag and pulling out a towel to wrap the injured Pokémon in. "Hang on. I can see you're strong. You're strong enough to hang on until we reach Azaela. You can do it!"

She set off down the path to Azaela with renewed haste. There'd be a clinic, there had to be…

"What was that?! Who the hell do you think we are, you stupid old bastard?!"

Saylee changed course and ducked into the treeline, not wanting to get mixed up in the fight she could hear brewing. Creeping along under the trees, she chanced a glance at the two men who were arguing in front of an old stone well and stopped cold.

There was an old man with his back to her. However, Saylee's gaze was drawn quickly past him to the younger man that he was yelling at, dressed all in black. Old, tattered black, but black nevertheless, with a faded red "R" still very visible on the front.

Saylee froze up. _No, not here, it's too early—_

The Hoppip whimpered in pain in her arms. Saylee looked from her to the Rocket, torn, but only briefly. The Hoppip was hurt. That had to come first.

_I'll send a message to Pallet from the clinic,_ she thought, running towards the gap in the trees where the town had to be. _I'll get Chaz, Hernan and Carrie and deal with this here and now._

{}

"Dammit, Bill! Why the hell do all of your things have a sodding barometer in them?!"

The clinic was blessedly empty with no other patients in the small building and the nurse having long since hurried off with the little Hoppip, so there was nobody to see Saylee scream in frustration and fling her Pokédex at the wall when the portpad failed to function. She'd tried to send for Chaz, Carrie and Hernan, but the connection was on the fritz and the note wouldn't go anywhere. It was probably all the rain—Saylee could hear it drumming off of the red roof of the squat cabin that housed the clinic.

She felt one of the pokéballs on her belt shake. To her surprise, Tobias appeared on the tiled floor in front of Saylee.

"Lee?" he asked, hugging Saylee's ankle and looking from her to the Pokédex lying on the ground. "Why are you so angry? I could _feel_ it."

"I'm sorry if I bothered you, Toby," Saylee said, kneeling down and scooping him up into a hug. "I'm just mad because the portpad isn't working. I think it's this heavy rain, Bill and Celio could never get a mainland connection during the winter storms in the Islands…"

"Why do you need the portpad?" Tobias asked. His face lit up into a huge grin. "Are Mummy and Daddy coming through? Are they?! Yay!" Then his face fell. "But if the portpad isn't working…"

"Exactly," Saylee said, rubbing her forehead. "But the problem is… Toby, Team Rocket is here."

Toby gasped. "They're… they're _bad men_!" he said angrily. "We need to _get_ them!"

"I am _not_ sending you into battle with Team Rocket!" Saylee said sharply. "Your mother would kill me. I need to get your parents, and Chaz… but I can't until the rain stops…" She looked hopelessly around the tiny reception and waiting area. There was a payphone next to the door to the bathroom, but there weren't any phone lines running between Johto and Kanto, so it wouldn't help her get in touch with Pallet.

She jumped to her feet as the nurse stepped through the door opposite her, the one that led to the intensive care room and surgery. "She'll pull through," she announced. "She'll need a little rest, some water and some time under the sun lamp, but she'll pull through. I just wish I could get her some real sunlight…"

"Is it normal for it to rain this much?" Saylee asked. The nurse shook her head.

"The Slowpoke control the rain for us," she explained. "Normally, our orchards flourish because they always get exactly as much rain as they need. I fear they're going to flood soon… it's been raining like this for nearly a week now…"

"Slowpoke?" Saylee asked sharply. "There's Slowpoke here? Where?"

"Normally, everywhere," the nurse said sadly. "They're all but worshipped here because the rain comes when they yawn or cry. But they've all vanished, and now it won't stop raining… we think they're all down in their well, but every time we try to go down, these awful men in black stop us…" she wrung her hands. "I do hope they aren't hurting them… but it won't stop raining, and even Slowpoke don't yawn this much…"

"Do you have any powerful trainers around here?" Saylee asked. She didn't feel that her current team was enough to take out Team Rocket, but she couldn't just walk on by. Putting together a militia would work as the next best thing.

"There's Bugsy, but he's just a child," the nurse said. "Also, he's not here. He went away to Goldenrod for the bug-catching competition… we don't have many other trainers. Most people care for bugs and Slowpoke, but don't train them for battle. We're peaceful here…"

"…can I see the Hoppip?" Saylee sighed.

Toby patted her hands consolingly, and she felt a little warmth and optimism flow back into her.

{}

"How do you feel?" Saylee asked, stroking the Hoppip's thin, soft leaves. They felt much more light and fragile than the leaves of an Oddish or Gloom; Saylee assumed that it had something to do with the Hoppip's ability to fly, according to the Pokédex. The torn parts had been cut off, so this Hoppip wouldn't be flying anytime soon with stunted leaves, but they were already growing back.

"Better…" the little Pokémon said softly. "I'm sorry to have been so much trouble…"

"It's no trouble at all," Saylee insisted. "My name's Lyra. What's yours?"

"Holly," she replied. "Thank you, Lyra…"

"The humans who hurt you… were they dressed in black?" Saylee asked.

Holly nodded, a motion that made her whole body rock. "T'ey chased us out of our nest… everyone flew off in different directions…" tears started to well up in her eyes. "But lots of t'em got hurt and captured… but t'ey hurt me real bad, and t'ey said I was… I was too weak…"

"Shows how thick they are," Saylee said, stroking Holly's leaves. "They're the ones who are weak and lazy. You lay out there in the rain until I found you and made it all the way here with those horrible wounds, and they say you're not strong?"

"…Thank you…" Holly whimpered, trying to wipe away her tears.

"Don't," Saylee said, holding her still. "Don't move, you'll tear your wounds open. You need to stay right here and heal."

"Holly, we're going to go beat the bad guys," Tobias told her. "I promise, we'll get them back for you and bring the sun back!" He hopped off of the table and ran out of the door with astonishing speed.

"Toby? TOBY!" Saylee shouted, running after him. "WAIT!"

For such a little Pokémon with such little legs, Tobias was _fast._ He was gone into the rain before Saylee could catch him. At least it wasn't hard to guess where he was going.

Saylee ran back to where she'd seen the old man arguing with a Team Rocket goon. Both of them were gone, leaving Saylee free to run to the old stone well. "TOBY!" she shouted again, unable to see the baby Pokémon.

"Down here!" his voice echoed out of the well. "There's an old human! He's hurt!"

"For pity's sake, Toby!" Saylee shouted, climbing down the damp, rickety ladder as fast as she dared. Upon reaching the bottom of the well, she immediately released Chip, Georgia, Wendy and Mary. "Tobias, do NOT run away from me like that! You promised you wouldn't!"

"I know, but… I'm so MAD!" Tobias wailed. "Team Rocket are BAD! They killed Mummy's mummy! An' Daddy's brother! They HURT people!"

"What on earth is going on?" Wendy asked, fluttering down to the old man sprawled on the bottom of the well.

Saylee followed her, kneeling down next to the old man. His eyes were closed, and he wasn't responding to sound. She checked his vitals andfound his breathing to be okay, with his chest rising and falling steadily. He didn't have anything broken and he didn't seem to be bleeding anywhere, but Saylee was still afraid to move him.

"Who're Team Rocket, then?" Georgia asked Saylee.

"…Bad people," she said. "Poachers and thieves and killers. They've kidnapped a bunch of Slowpoke and they're cutting off their tails down here."

"So they're the bastarts, are they?" Mary said, electricity beginning to spark from her wool. "Let's _batter_ 'em!"

"Wait!" Saylee said sharply. "Team Rocket are—they're strong, they're dangerous, they'll _kill_, they—"

"They're already knowin' we're 'ere, Lee," Chip said. Saylee looked up just in time to see a sentry Zubat flapping off, screeching about intruders.

"Come oan, then!" Mary shouted after it. "Bring it oan, square go, right here!"

"Mary!" Saylee said sharply. "We can't… oh, damn it." She returned Tobias. "Carrie and Hernan will _murder_ me if he gets involved… alright. We can do this. They're not _that_ tough. We just need to fight smart."

"We're waitin' on your call, moy love," Georgia promised, hefting up a couple of rocks. Saylee stood up, stepping protectively in front of the unconscious old man as two Rocket grunts ran up to them, releasing their Pokémon…

…young, weak Zubat and Rattata. Saylee smiled.

"Is that all you've got?" she said. "Georgia, Mary, those Zubat will not like it when you do your thing. Wendy, Rock Smash should handle the Rattata. Chip, come with me…"

"What're you thinkin', Lee?" Chip asked as the other Pokémon dove into battle. Saylee skirted around the cave wall until she could see the two Rocket grunts clearly.

"I'm thinking that if they're cutting off Slowpoke tails and those are the kind of Pokémon they have," she said, pointing at the knives in the men's hands, "then they've got weapons of their own. And I'm thinking that they're less likely to get stabbing with embers all over their hands."

"Mam was always tellin' me how humans are bein' too weak for us t'be usin' powers on…" Chip said nervously.

"Singed fingers won't kill them," Saylee said, "but those knives will kill us. Remember; these men are poachers."

The "P" word did the trick; Chip's back flared up. "Let's get 'em!" He yelled, firing hot embers onto the hands of the Rockets.

{}

{}

_I'm sure you've all had those moments where metronome throws you something ridiculous. A little Clefairy using Roar of Time or Spatial Rend… in this case, Tobias pulled out Blast Burn. Bloody Blast Burn. So I didn't catch anything in Union Cave : x_

_Name: Holly. Species: Hoppip. Nature: Timid. Ability: Chlorophyll. Level: 6_


	8. Chapter 7

_Pokémon: 10 Deaths: 0_

The Rocket grunts in the cramped, winding caves that branched out beneath the well had not regrouped ably. They hadn't been training and some of them didn't even know what their Pokémon could do. Saylee's new team wiped the cave floor with them.

Georgia was somewhat uncomfortable with being told to give defeated Rockets a good thump on the temple to knock them out. "It's just moy mum always said never t' thump 'umans," she said, dropping a couple of them. "You're an awful fragile lot, you are."

"You're not really hurtin' 'em, just makin' 'em be sleepin'," Chip consoled her while heating the metal handle of the knife in one man's hand until he dropped it.

"We're not that fragile," Saylee said, taking the black jacket off of one of the unconscious men and tearing it into strips to wrap around the bleeding tail stump of a mutilated Slowpoke. "Just so long as you don't kill them, and I know you've got more control than that. If they get hurt, it's no more than they deserve."

"Is that not rather harsh?" Wendy asked, flitting around ahead to peek around a boulder.

"No," Saylee said, wrapping up another Slowpoke, "this is."

"I won't let you interfere with Proton!" A black-uniformed woman yelled angrily, releasing two Zubat. Mary zapped the Zubat while Georgia gently knocked out their trainer. The whole altercation took seconds, and Saylee barely noticed it, having frozen in fear at the woman's words. _Proton._

"I'm not seein' any more," Chip said. "You be feelin' a'right, Mary?" Her wool had swollen massively, to the point where small puffs were starting to drop off.

"Feelin' a wee touch funny," Mary admitted, "but mainly _ragin'_. Let's go!"

"Wait!" Saylee shouted sharply. "We need to be more careful from here," she hissed. "The leader of this op is _Proton._"

"Who be that, then?" Chip asked. Saylee shivered.

"He's cold as ice, bloodthirsty, and a stone cold psychopath," Saylee said. The pained moans of tortured Pokémon were ringing in her ears. "I've only seen him once, and I was lucky to get away from that alive. I've heard more about him since, none of it good. He will kill us all if we get the chance. If I tell you to run, you _run_, understand?"

"But—" Chip argued. Saylee grabbed him and hugged him.

"Please," she whispered. "I don't want him to kill any of you."

"So, are you the little girl who's trying to interfere?"

Saylee froze. She kept her head angled forwards, shadowing her face under her hat brim, but she could still just glimpse him under the edge. He looked just like he had on Five Island: the slick green hair, the cold eyes, the unhinged grin. A knife was casually dangling from his fingers, dripping with blood.

"So what if we are, eh?" Mary said, her wool expanding even more as it crackled with electricity.

"Mistake, little girl," Proton said softly. "You have no idea who you're dealing with here."

"The cruellest guy in Team Rocket," Saylee said, standing up but keeping her head bowed. Proton had only ever gotten a glimpse of her face before, but from what Vera said, he was vindictive. Once was enough.

He actually seemed pleased at her assessment of him. "That's right," he said, grin widening. "Though cruelty is really just a mean word for practicality, isn't it?"

"You be the one hurtin' all o' the Slowpoke!" Chip yelled angrily. "Leave 'em be!"

"Oh, please," Proton said, rolling his eyes. "They barely feel it, and the tails grow right back anyway. Where's the problem?"

"You honestly don't know?" Wendy said, sounding scandalised.

"No, he just doesn't care," Saylee said softly.

"My, you do know me well, little girl," Proton said, releasing a Zubat and a Koffing. "Once I've killed your insolent little Pokémon, I _will_ have to get to know you better."

Chip growled and leapt down from Saylee's arms. The other three Pokémon also stepped forwards, bristling.

"I don't think you can lay a finger on them," Saylee said, pointing at the Zubat and Koffing in turn. "Thundershock! Ember!"

"Kill them!" Proton ordered. Before his Pokémon could reach Saylee's, they were knocked down by fire and lightning. Saylee didn't watch the battle too closely, confident in Chip and Mary's ability to defeat the low-level Pokémon that Proton was using. She kept her eyes on the knife in Proton's hand as he flipped it around to grip it properly.

As soon as his Pokémon fell, Proton stepped towards Chip, raising his knife. Saylee moved faster, drawing back her fist and, remembering one of Hernan's tips through her blinding rage, aiming for a point about a foot behind Proton's head.

He didn't see it coming. He wasn't expecting her to attack instead of her Pokémon. He hadn't anticipated the fist between his eyes. Despite the pain that split across her knuckles, it was _sweet_ to punch Proton out.

"Ahhh," she hissed, shaking her hand a few times and then pressing her sleeve over the blood welling from her split knuckles. "Moron! Don't punch people in the head with a closed fist!" She looked down at Proton, who was visibly dazed and struggling to get back to his feet. "Worth it."

"You…" Proton growled woozily, trying to sit up, hand to his bleeding nose. "…little… bitch…"

"That's enough out o' you, then," Georgia said, giving him a tap to the back of the head. He collapsed again and did not get up. "Where did you learn t' Mega Punch, moy love?"

"Toby's father," Saylee said, clutching her sore knuckles. "_Damn,_ it felt good to punch that creep."

"Lee?" Chip called. His voice sounded odd. "I be feelin' funny…"

"Chip!" Saylee gasped when she turned to see. "Mary, too! You've evolved!"

Chip's voice sounded different—clearer and less nasal—because his snout was now much smaller, though his head was larger and his body longer. The fires on his back were larger, and a second fire had ignited on top of his head. Mary, too, was larger, and her skin had turned pink. She shook herself and tufts of wool fell off, leaving her with only a ruff around her neck and a large tuft on top of her head.

"Well, look at _you_!" Wendy exclaimed.

"Congratulations, you two!" Saylee said, smiling proudly at them. She pried Proton's knife out of his fingers and stuck it in her bag, in case he woke up and had a bad idea. "Since you're so big now, you can help Georgia and I carry out some Slowpoke!"

"Aww…" Chip complained, but banked his fires so he could haul out some Slowpoke on his back.

{}

"I can't believe he got away," Saylee groaned, thumping her head onto the tabletop. Azaela wasn't exactly a tourist destination, and the little inn was as empty as the clinic had been before the influx of weak and injured Slowpoke. The "inn" was really just the spare rooms of the lady who owned the largest orchard in the area. Saylee was the only guest, and the only one at the table aside from her Pokémon.

"Should've stayed with him or something. Stupid, stupid, _stupid…_"

"Gettin' them Slowpoke out was more impor'ant, moy love," Georgia consoled her.

"I wanted to fight too!" Tobias complained, before giggling as Mary's tail bopped him on the head. He resumed chasing Mary's tail light back and forth, in awe of her and Chip's transformations. Holly, who had insisted on being let out of bed, was lazily floating on the updraft of heat from Chip's back. Georgia was sitting on a chair to Saylee's left and Wendy was perched on the back of a chair on Saylee's other side, whether trying to comfort her or feeling more protective of her with Proton on the loose, Saylee wasn't sure.

"Toby, it was the man from Five Island," she said. Tobias gasped in horror.

"He was bad," he said. "He made the bad sound that hurt everyone…"

"Bad sound?" Georgia asked. Saylee nodded, scowling darkly.

"When I saw him before," she muttered, "he was trying to make Pokémon stronger by using a radio signal. It just hurt them…."

"You shouldn't be cheatin' like that t' be gettin' strong!" Chip said indignantly. "Anyone can be strong if they be trainin', like you was sayin', Lee!"

"Here you go!" The innkeeper sang out. She was a short woman with light hair, a working tan and a smile for everyone, especially Saylee and her Pokémon after they'd brought out the Slowpoke. She trotted out of the kitchen with wooden bowls of food for Chip, Mary and Tobias, which she set on the floor next to them. "Spicy for you, leafy for you, and sweet just like you!"

"Thank you, ma'am!" Tobias said happily. The lady smiled at him and then at Saylee.

"Yours'll be just a minute, dear," she said. "I'll be right back with a little something for your other Pokémon." She hurried into the kitchen and came back with a tray with bowls of nectar for Wendy and Holly and a plate of gravel for Georgia. "Here we go! Yours is just about done, dear. It's on us. Thank you so much for saving our Slowpoke!"

"Thank you," Saylee said gratefully, watching her Pokémon tuck in. The innkeeper returned a short while later with a wooden plate of rice balls. Saylee was pleasantly surprised to find fruit packed into them when she bit into one. They were delicious.

"Miss Lyra?" A little girl in a green pinafore came dashing in through the door with a bag slung over her shoulder. She spotted Saylee and grinned brightly, exposing a missing front tooth, and came running up to the table. "Thank you for saving my grandad and Sami from the bad guys in the well!"

"You're Kurt's granddaughter, right?" Saylee said. She remembered seeing the girl's Slowpoke. She had been clutching a letter from the girl's parents. It had reminded Saylee that her own mother was due a letter as soon as Saylee could connect the portpad again.

The little girl nodded. "The doctor said that Grandad threw his back out, but he'll be all better if he rests!" She declared, dropping a bag onto the table. "These are for you! Grandad makes them!"

"Oh, wow," Saylee said, opening the bag and picking up one of the myriad brightly-coloured orbs sitting inside. "Are these… pokéballs?" They looked like pokéballs, but the shells were rough and didn't feel like metal. They weren't painted the same colour as any of the standard pokéballs either; green, pink and orange were all present, and the pokéballs were painted in unusual curving or dotted patterns.

"The traditional kind!" the girl said proudly. "They're really hard to make, but nobody makes them better than Grandad! He's teaching me to make them too! Look, that one's good for big Pokémon an' that one's good for fast Pokemon an' that one's good for water Pokémon an'…" she pointed in turn to a grey pokéball with a ring of blue dots, a light red ball with an elaborate yellow pattern, and a green ball with a red stripe down the middle. Saylee listened patiently, continuing to eat, while the little girl explained the different pokéballs, regularly interrupting herself with something she'd forgotten to mention before. She eventually wound down, sticking her tongue through the gap in her teeth while she tried to think of anything else she'd forgotten.

"Thank you very much," Saylee said, tucking the pokéballs into her bag. "Tell your grandad thank you, too. I hope he feels better soon. Here, do you want this?" She offered the last rice ball to the little girl.

"Thank you so much! I'll tell him, Miss Lyra! Bye!" the little girl called, grinning and clutching her prize. She waved to the innkeeper as she ran off.

"Watch your step, Maisie! How is it?" the woman asked Saylee. There was a chorus of "yummy!" sounds from her Pokémon.

"Delicious, thank you!" Saylee said, pushing aside her empty plate.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, dear," the woman said, beaming as she started piling up dishes.

"Ma'am, do you know how to get through the forest?" Saylee asked.

"Hmmm… not really, dear," the lady said, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "I'm afraid I don't go through much. Bugsy knows, though. I'm sure he'll tell you… well, he may challenge you," she added with a little smile. "He's the best trainer around, you see, and rather a brat about it, I'm afraid. Well, he's only fifteen."

"Is he, now?" Saylee said. "Well, do you know when he'll be back?"

"Should be tomorrow, dear," the innkeeper said. "You get a good night's rest, dear. I'll tell him when he gets back that you'd like to see him. You deserve a bit of a lie in!"

{}

"Lee?" Chip asked as they settled down for the night. The inn had old fashioned beds, made up of a thick blanket and pillow on a soft pallet on the floor. This was low class for Johto, but it was still nicer than most places in Kanto.

"Yes, Chip?" she said, giving her hair a brush and holding some of it over Chip's head to dry it. The inn even had hot showers and a laundry service. It was a blessing to be out of her soaked, muddy clothes and into a dry, fluffy white dressing gown.

"Who exactly are Team Rocket?" he asked. "You were just sayin' you were 'ere lookin' for bad folk, but… well, there's a lot I'm not understandin'."

"You was troyin' not t' let that Proton see your face, weren't you, moy love?" Georgia said. Saylee nodded. "Whoy? Even if they knows you, what'd 'appen if they saw you?"

"Red alert," Saylee said, brushing her hair down into a low ponytail. "Team Rocket apparently has people all over the country. If they know _I'm_ here…"

"An' who're you, then?" Georgia pressed. "_Lee_?"

"Lee…" Tobias said, climbing onto her lap. "I know you're supposed to keep your identity secret in case Team Rocket finds out, but… these are our friends! Can't we tell _them?_" He looked around at the others. "You can all keep secrets, can't you?"

"Aye," Mary said suspiciously. "But I'm no' a big fan o' secrets bein' kept frae me."

"Me neither," Georgia said, folding her arms. "So what's goin' on, then?"

"My name isn't Lyra and I'm not a newbie trainer," Saylee sighed. "I'm sorry. This is why I didn't want to bring you all along. I knew I'd come across Team Rocket somewhere here in Johto… I just didn't expect to _here_…"

"They were hardly that strong," Wendy said dismissively. Saylee shook her head.

"There are two executives stronger than he is," she said, "Archer and Ariana, I believe. And above them, Giovanni… they were weak there, but they can regroup. They have numbers. And if they know _I'm_ here, every single one of them will be after my head."

"You big enemies or somethin', then?" Georgia asked. Saylee nodded.

"I defeated Giovanni before, but he always escaped and came back stronger," she said. "He'll be back again, I'm sure, stronger than ever. When he is… Well, I've got Pokémon that have fought him before, and they're stronger now too." She hugged Tobias. "Toby's parents, and Chaz the Charizard… When I come across Team Rocket again, I will bring them to fight. I won't risk any of you against the stronger executives. There's no need for you to get involved."

"Aye, right!" Mary burst out. "Everyin in the country ought tae be gi'en these brounfluffs a good skelp upside the heid!"

"Brounfluffs?" Tobias asked. "What's that?"

"Ye ken, the fluff that goes broun 'cause it's right over your—"

"That's quite enough," Saylee interrupted firmly. "There's no need to get any of you involved and you won't be. There's just no need. I won't see any of you die for this." She hugged Tobias tighter. "I've seen too many…"

"It's okay, Lee," Tobias said, hugging her back. "We'll all get stronger. We can't not, with _you_ as our trainer. An' then we'll team up with Mummy an' Daddy an' Chaz an' beat up Team Rocket!"

"Oi'm all for that moyself," Georgia agreed. "Just don't loy t' us again, alroight? T'ain't roight, loyin' to the folk you foight alongsoide. We got t' be able to trust one another, don't we?"

"She's quite right," Wendy agreed. "I personally have no qualms about assisting in the defeat of the foul creatures who mutilated those poor Slowpoke so, but I wish to be able to trust my trainer."

Holly fluttered over to Saylee. "I like you, Lee," she said softly. "I t'ink I can get stronger wit' you. I want to get strong enough to get back at Team Rocket."

"Fighting isn't the only strength there is," Saylee said, stroking the scars across Holly's side gently. "It's the only strength that they know, and they don't even have that. It's almost pitiable, but it doesn't forgive what they've done." She shook her head. "And it doesn't forgive me lying to you. I'm so sorry."

"It'll be fine, Lee," Chip said. "We don't mind helpin' you t'be hidin' yourself to the rest o' Johto… just don't be doin' it to us, 'kay?"

"'Kay," Saylee said, reaching out and hugging him. "…Thank you."

{}

{}

_Oooft… just finished my last assessment. Two performances, a presentation, and a pair of essays, done and gone! Now, aside from work, I have nothing to do but write and get my NaNoWriMo edited into something that anybody might actually want to read :D_

_Due to blood and violence and Proton and language, I've bumped this fic up to M. Actually, by the guidelines, this series probably should have been M from the beginning… whoops XP_


	9. Chapter 8

_Pokémon: 10 Deaths: 0_

"You took out that gang yourself? Nice. Good going. I mean, I could've handled them already, but Ilex Forest wasn't safe to travel through in the storm, you know?"

If Saylee hadn't been told that Bugsy was fifteen, she would have put him at closer to Ethan's age. She'd almost tripped over him, coming out of the inn. He was small and skinny, barely over five feet tall—half a foot shorter than Saylee—with a somewhat girly-looking mop of curly purple hair that clashed oddly with his camouflage-green t-shirt and shorts. He kept deepening his voice to sound older and carried a long-handled bug net that was taller than he was. "You're that tough, are you?" she asked, watching Bugsy idly twirl the net in his hands.

"Oh, yeah! I'm the toughest trainer around!" He frowned thoughtfully for a moment. "Well, they say Maisie's granddad is pretty tough, but he never fights, he just makes pokéballs. So that makes _me_ the best. Plus, I'm the best at bug Pokémon!"

"Yes, I hear you travel through to Goldenrod fairly often," Saylee said. Bugsy shrugged.

"Well, I don't normally go to the _city_," he said. "Too big, not enough trees. You can find your way pretty easy from just past the old shrine, though."

"Could you tell me the way?" Saylee asked. Bugsy nodded, grinning cheekily.

"Suuuuure… but first, let's have a battle!" he insisted. "I want to _show_ you how tough I am. I don't think you believe me."

"Seeing is believing," Saylee agreed. "Is there a good place to fight?"

"My best bugs are in my greenhouse," Bugsy said, pointing with his net to some spot in the forest past the orchards, where some of the locals were reburying the roots of a tree that had been partially washed out in the storm. "Come on!"

_Greenhouse_? Saylee wondered as she followed the boy through the trees. Greenhouses in Kanto were vital for growing safe food, and nobody would dare fight near or in one for fear of damaging the crops. _Then again, this place is full of orchards. I guess this greenhouse isn't for food._

An odd-looking building came into view out of the trees ahead of her. The wood-panelled walls rose up for two or three stories before abruptly becoming a sectioned glass dome. Bugsy pressed some buttons on a panel by the door as he walked in, causing several of the glass roofing sections to slide aside. A flock of Butterfree immediately flew out of the gap in the roof, chatting to each other about the nicer weather. Bugsy waved to them, then pulled the door open and went inside. Saylee followed, openly staring.

The greenhouse was full of food, but not for humans. It was full of tall, leafy trees, dense bushes and sprays of exotic flowers. Bug-type Pokémon were _everywhere_, nibbling at the leaves off of bushes or nosing at flowers. Most of them called out greetings to Bugsy, asking after some kind of tournament that he'd attended.

"Alright, guys, let's clear out the battlefield!" Bugsy called. A flock of black-spotted, red-bodied bugs with four legs and bulbous eyes—a Johto-native species called Ledyba, Saylee recalled—fluttered off of a patch of grass and circled it, creating a red ring about twenty feet wide around the "battlefield", an expanse of grass strewn with random rocks and dirt patches. Bugsy ran past the other side, climbing up a tree like a Mankey. "I'll be right down, I just need to get a couple of my bugs! Blossom! Hey, Blossom?"

"You stand just there, miss," one of the Ledyba said, pointing with two of her four white feet. Saylee walked over to the indicated rock and let Chip out.

"Thank you very much," she said politely to the Ledyba. "Right, Chip, friendly battle against bug-types. Your power'll have gotten a bit of a spike now that you've evolved, so go carefully, okay?"

"Sure," Chip said, nodding. "Who're we t'be fightin'?"

"Bugsy," Saylee said, watching the kid drop out of a tree with the biggest Metapod that she'd ever seen in his arms.

"Right, let's get started!" he said, running onto the battlefield. "Is that your first Pokémon? Never seen that before. Never mind. Blossom, Tackle it!"

Blossom rocked in his arms and then suddenly flew towards Chip, propelled by some unseen force from inside of the cocoon. Chip was knocked over by the blow, the velocity and hard shell adding up to a fair bit of power.

"Chip, use Ember!" Saylee ordered. Chip spat a burst of bright orange embers at Blossom. He was clearly trying to go light, but a Quilava's fires burned far hotter than a Cyndaquil's, and Blossom immediately wilted under the heat, collapsing limply to the ground with the tips of her cocoon curling. Her eyes were closed, but she abruptly expelled some steam from the chinks in her cocoon and sighed, so she seemed alright. "Well done! Next?"

"No! Blossom!" Bugsy cried, running over and scooping up his fallen Metapod. He cradled her like a baby and only winced at the burning touch of her overheated shell, refusing to set her down. "Warranunna, Poison Sting it!" He ducked down over Blossom. A Kakuna that had been clinging to his back flung itself forwards, poisonous stingers bared at Chip.

"Chip, dodge it quick!" Saylee shouted. The Kakuna was so big that she wondered how she hadn't noticed it before; it looked almost as tall as Bugsy, much larger than Wilma or Wendy had ever gotten.

"Oi!" Chip yelped, barely dodging the stingers.

"Ember again!" Saylee ordered. Chip fired another weakened shot of embers at Warranunna's back, and again, it immediately knocked out his opponent. Bugsy scooped up both of his burnt cocoon Pokémon and ran back to the edge of the impromptu arena, his face a picture of rage.

"You asked for it now!" He yelled, his already unbroken voice shooting up an octave. "Sadila! SADILA!" He whistled sharply.

There was a flurry of wind as a tall green Pokémon flew down from the highest trees and into the arena in front of Bugsy. "Might not want to hold back on this one," Saylee muttered, looking at the large, fine wings buzzing from the Pokémon's back and the long, sharp scythes that served as its forearms. "That's a Scyther, and they can be deadly."

"You bet!" Bugsy said proudly, settling down to rub burn salve into Blossom's shell. "Quick Attack, Sadila!"

"Think fast!" Sadila said, shooting towards Chip. She was on him before he could blink, smacking him aside with the flat of her scythe. Chip was knocked almost out of the circle. The Ledyba fluttered nervously away from him as he rolled to his feet, looking much smaller with his fires snuffed out from rolling across the ground.

"Ember!" Saylee ordered. Chip spat a large blast of yellow-hot embers at Sadila, but she dodged easily, flying high up into the air, out of the reach of Chip's embers.

"Now, Focus Energy!" Bugsy ordered, and Sadila began to glow white with power.

"Chip, you've got a lot more firepower now," Saylee encouraged him. "I know you can hit Sadila from down here!"

"I'll be givin' it a go!" Chip promised, his back and head flaring up again. He flicked his whole body, tail to head, and a ring of fire shot from his body. The fire rolled towards Sadila just as she began to fly down to attack him, but the wheel of flame hit her first and knocked her out of the sky.

"Quick Attack, finish it!" Saylee ordered. Before Sadila could struggle back upright, Chip darted forwards and slammed into her, knocking her out completely.

"Sadila!" Bugsy cried, setting Warranunna aside and running to her side with the tub of burn salve. "Are you _okay_? Sadila!"

"That was impressive, Chip!" Saylee said, running over to hug him. She had to hold back slightly until he banked his fires and cooled down enough for her to touch him. "Well done!"

"You just won 'cause you had a fire-type," Bugsy complained.

"Well, yeah," Saylee said. "Every type has their weaknesses. You've got to be on the lookout for them. Do you have any strategies for fighting fire-types?"

"Usually, I just don't," Bugsy said, putting Sadila into an apricorn pokéball. "I'm going to have to take her to the clinic… _great_."

"I'll walk you there," Saylee said. The Ledyba scattered as the pair of them walked out of the arena, with Chip following Saylee. "You promised you'd tell me the route to the shrine in the forest, didn't you?"

"Oh, uh, yeah…" Bugsy fidgeted with Sadila's pokéball. "There's an old path to it, but it's overgrown in a lot of places, and you _can't_ cut anything down near the shrine, so you need to go around quite a few spots. The path's pretty clear on the way to where the charcoal makers cut, but then it branches off to the left after…"

Saylee typed a few notes on her pokégear map as Bugsy talked. Thankfully, the route description was heavy on the landmarks, so Saylee figured she could follow it.

Holly was playing around in some flowers outside of the clinic when Saylee and Bugsy arrived, pushing them out of the mud. She grinned brightly when she saw Saylee and Bugsy, twirling her leaves to float up into the air. "Lyra!" she said happily, floating over Chip's back and giggling as the heat off his back buffeted her into the air. "You're back! I t'ought you'd left already…"

"We're just about to," Saylee said. "Thanks for the directions, Bugsy!"

"Just wait 'til Blossom and Warranunna hatch, I'll beat you then!" Bugsy promised, waving and walking into the clinic with his three pokéballs.

"Where're you going?" Holly asked curiously.

"We're going through the forest to Goldenrod," Saylee explained. "Shall we take you home first?"

"Ummm… could I maybe come wit' you t'rough the forest?" Holly asked shyly. She turned from pink to red when she blushed, though the scars on her side went white. "Please? I always wanted to know what's on t' ot'er side of t' forest, but it's awful big… I never been furt'er'n t' shrine. _Everyone_ goes t'ere."

"Then you could be leadin' us t' the shrine, couldn't she be!" Chip said excitedly.

"Would you like that, Holly?" Saylee asked. Holly rocked happily, fluttering her leaves.

"Very much!" She said brightly. "C'mon, t'is way…"

{}

The trees in Ilex Forest were closer and taller than the orchard trees around Azaela and were much more wild and varied than the neat, trimmed, nearly identical orchard trees. Light fell through the gnarled branches in random patterns onto the mossy forest floor. The wild old trees reminded Saylee of Viridian forest, but it wasn't quite so dark or close. _Then again, maybe Viridian's not so bad now,_ Saylee thought. _Toby said that there was a forest fire… and Mum's last letter said that she's been going to Pewter to sell lunch to the miners there. So it must be a lot safer and easier to travel…_

"What're _you_ doing here, weakling?"

"_Silver_?" Saylee said in shock, turning at the familiar boy's angry shout. "What're you doing here?"

"I heard Team Rocket had returned," Silver said, crossing his arms and scowling at her. Tyra imitated his stance. She was bigger than Saylee remembered, nearly as tall as Silver, and her markings had changed, the cream patch covering much more of her body and her red crest rising up in spikes on top of her head. Silver, however, was wearing the same tatty black jumper and scruffy purple trousers as he had the last two times that Saylee had seen him.

"Tyra, you been evolvin'?" Chip said in surprise. Tyra smirked.

"Duh, I'm a Croconaw now!" she declared. "You're looking a little less weak than usual, too."

"We came to see the only guys around weaker than _you_," Silver declared. "We were gonna kick their _butts_. But they've already run off!"

"Because I beat them," Saylee told him. "Seeing as how they're weaker than me and all… were you going to try and fight them yourself?"

"Of course!" Silver insisted. "They're _weak_. They act tough all together in a big group, but that's just 'cause on their own, they're _weak_. Just like _you_! I hate _all_ of you!"

"Silver, you're just a kid—" Saylee began. Silver snarled, eyes widening as his eyebrows tensed, giving him a startlingly feral look. He grabbed a pokéball from his pocket.

"I'm not just a kid!" he shouted. "I'm strong! I'll show you! _Go_!"

Saylee gasped, horrified, as a Gastly appeared. "Silver, why do you have a _Gastly_?" she asked. "It needs to be taken back to its place of rest right away—!"

"I'd rather _not_," the Gastly said disdainfully. "Such a _dull_ place, and I'm not inclined to linger _there_. I'd _far_ rather continue to cause mischief." He grinned widely, sticking his tongue out at Saylee.

"Enough talk! Attack!" Silver ordered. "Lick!"

"Eew!" Saylee yelped, grabbing Holly out of the air and stepping backwards. Tobias' pokéball shook as the little Togepi appeared on the ground in front of her. "Toby!"

"There's a ghost!" he cried, staring at the Gastly and looking distressed. "You're a _mean_ one, too. If you're not going to rest yet, then please _settle down_!" He waved his hands, beginning to glow.

"Don't be usin' Metronome!" Chip shouted. Saylee frowned.

"No, metronome's white light, not pink…" she said, confused. The Gastly suddenly cried out as he glowed pink, shuddering and fading.

"What'd you do? _Cheater_!" Silver cried, returning the Gastly. "Ganging up!"

"You were bein' the one attackin' by surprise!" Chip shouted, flaring up. Saylee let Holly go and leaned down to scoop up Tobias instead.

"Toby, _please_ don't jump into things like that," she pleaded.

"It was just a _ghost_! I can handle _ghosts_!" Tobias insisted.

Silver stamped his foot. "We're having a _battle_!" He shouted. "Pick one and let's _go_!"

"Fine, then. Everybody step back," Saylee ordered. "Mary, go!"

"Aight then," Mary said, flicking her tail as she appeared. "Whit's gaun oan?"

"You're throwing a pink, fluffy Pokémon at me?" Silver sneered. "You're such a stupid _girl_. That stupid girly Pokémon's gonna get _bit_!" He released a Zubat. It fluttered around Silver's head, opening and closing its mouth. Saylee couldn't hear a sound, but she knew that it had to be "seeing" her and her Pokémon with supersonic waves.

"Uh, Silver…" the Zubat said nervously, turning to his trainer.

"Shut up and bite it!" Silver ordered. The Zubat fluttered nervously for a moment, but then obeyed, flying at Mary with his fangs bared.

"Thundershock, Mary!" Saylee called. Mary's wool bulged with electricity, shooting out in a concentrated yellow bolt at the Zubat. It shrieked, this time _very_ audibly, and fell out of the air.

"You're all USELESS!" Silver shouted angrily, returning it. "Tyra! You're tough! YOU bite it!"

Tyra was faster than the Zubat. Her jaws clamped down hard on Mary's neck. That only meant that Mary didn't have to aim as she zapped her. Tyra collapsed, twitching.

"I don't have time for this!" Silver shouted angrily, returning Tyra. "I'll go get stronger, and then I'll crush you _and_ Team Rocket and all the rest of the _weaklings_!" He turned and ran into the forest.

"Silver, WAIT!" Saylee shouted, running after him. The forest might have been lighter than Viridian Forest, but it was still a dim and twisty maze. Saylee soon lost him among the unfamiliar trees and paths. _That kid is_ good_ at escaping…_

"Whit's that wean's problem?" Mary asked, confused. "Who _is_ he?"

"Honestly, Mary, I wish I knew," Saylee said, looking around and trying to pull aside some tree branches hanging down over the path ahead of her. "He seems to have some grudge against me, and it sounds like he's got something against Team Rocket…"

"Maybe they stole one of his Pokémon before or something?" Tobias suggested. "Or _killed_ one? They do that. They're _bad_."

"Maybe…" Saylee curled protectively over him as she tried to shoulder past an oversized bush. "Agh… Holly, you said you can cut bushes aside, right? Can you—?"

"No!" Holly said sharply, flushing when they all stared at her. "Sorry. But we're near t' shrine, and, um, you can't cut anyt'in' down near t' shrine… you _can't_!"

"Bugsy was sayin' somethin' like that, wasn't he?" Chip said, banking his fires down.

"How for no?" Mary asked.

Holly carefully floated around a bush. "T' protector lives t'ere, sometimes," she said. "He protects all t'at's green and growing. Stuff growing around t' shrine belongs to him special. Cutting it down's sacrilege… t'ere it is!"

Even though cutting plants near the shrine down was sacrilege, there was a small dirt clearing, all the grass worn away by the feet of pilgrims over untold years. The shrine itself was so overgrown that it was barely visible, but Saylee could just about pick out the wooden hut shape. "Come to think of it, the inn had a little version of this shrine near the door, didn't it?" she said. "So did the clinic… a little wooden hut with a statue in it… it still had leaves growing on it, as I recall…"

"Leaving live leaves on the figure is a must for it to retain favour with the little fairy-god. I have seen such figures with green leaves that had not wilted in years. Life is indeed a blessing…"

"Who's there?" Saylee asked, looking around. The woman melted out of the trees as if she were one of the ninjas of Fuchsia, which Saylee felt that she really shouldn't have been able to do in that red dress. "It's you!"

"Excuse me?" the woman said, tilting her head slightly in confusion. Saylee thought that it had to be the same woman that she had run into in Violet; red kimono, pink obi, thick pale makeup, elaborately piled hair. "Oh… you have a little fairy of your own. I wonder if the little god would appear for him?"

"There's nobody here," Tobias said, shrinking back into Saylee's arms. "It's that creepy lady," he whispered loudly to Saylee.

Saylee nodded. "What are you doing here?" she asked suspiciously.

The woman bowed her head. "I came to see if the little god is here now," she said, "but, alas, it seems not. Forgive me for trespassing upon your time." She turned and walked back into the trees.

"Hey—" Saylee started to go after her, but there was a brief flash of pink and she was gone. "…Dammit. Why is everyone vanishing on me today?"

"_We're _still here," Tobias said, giving her a hug. Saylee smiled and hugged him back.

"Bugsy was sayin' the path's easy t'be findin' past here," Chip said, "but he was sayin' it'd still be a couple o' days t'Goldenrod, didn't he?"

"He did," Saylee agreed, shifting her bag strap. "Come on, then. We've still got a few hours of sunlight. Let's see how far we can go."

{}

{}

_What a derp am I, posting this a day late. I blame _Portal_. I just got a 1TB external hard drive to free up some space on my hard drive (496GB of video alone, ooft) and once I had done so I realized that I had hard drive space enough to install Steam. And since I was doing that and oh look is that a Steam Winter Sale I see, I decided to finally try _Portal_. And, um… I lost a day somewhere XD Mainly trying not to get shot because those damn turrets shot me SO MUCH. I don't care how cute their voices are, they killed me so many times DX_

…_So here we are, at the end of the world XD_

_Name: Zarina. Species: Zubat. Nature: Serious. Ability: Inner Focus. Level: 5_


	10. Chapter 9

_Pokémon: 11 Deaths: 0_

"Okay, we're finally out of the woods," Saylee sighed, relieved to see open grass and daylight. The forest had made for good training grounds, being dense with Zubat and Oddish, but it had also made it a tiring trek. The past three days had been busy and tiring, and all of Saylee's Pokémon were lagging a little. Saylee had been about to return them all to their pokéballs for the night before spotting the exit. Holly alone was still energetic, having evolved that morning, and was floating around, happily spinning her big yellow flower. "Damn, it's getting dark already… I didn't notice, that place is so dark as it is…"

"Is that Goldenrod?" Tobias asked, pointing to the city that was rising out of the skyline in the distance. Saylee could see pinpricks of lights in the windows of the taller buildings, and by counting them she could tell that some buildings were over twenty stories high. They looked so small and distant, however, that Saylee estimated that it would still be two or three hours' walk to get there.

"Maybe we should be pitchin' camp for the night," Chip suggested, echoing Saylee's thoughts.

"Lyyyraaaaaaaaaaaa!"

"Ethan!" Saylee said in surprise as the boy came barrelling towards her, Marina on his heels. "What are you doing here?"

"My granny and granddad live here, and they sent their Fearow so I could come visit!" the boy said happily, grabbing Saylee's hand to tug her off. "They run a daycare for Pokémon! I got Marina here when she was an Azurill!" He pointed at a high, white, wooden fence that was encircling a large area of grass and trees. A house was attached to the fence at one point, the back of the building in the enclosed area. There was a sign out front advertising the daycare service that Ethan had just mentioned.

"It was nice, but I didn't have a lot of friends because everyone comes and goes," Marina added. "But I get to see Granny and Grandad a lot since I live with Ethan!"

"Ethan, what's all the fuss about?" an old man said, poking his head out of the door of the house. He was completely bald and peered at them through a thick pair of glasses. "Do you know this young lady? Ah, I see," he chortled, winking at Saylee. "Is this charming girl your girlfriend?"

"_Grandpa_!" Ethan complained, going bright red. Marina giggled at her trainer.

"Oh, how precocious," Wendy tittered to Georgia. Ethan crossed his arms and went into a huff.

"I'm Lyra, and this is Toby, Chip, Mary, Holly, Wendy and Georgia," Saylee said, indicating each of her team members in turn. They all waved and smiled when introduced. "We're trying to head north… do you know how far it is to Goldenrod?"

"Oh, it's still two or three hours if you're walking," Ethan's grandpa said. Saylee's Pokémon groaned. "Don't worry, you're all welcome to stay the night here. It's getting late, and you're Ethan's friends. Stay!" He stepped back into the house and held the door open, waving them inside.

"Thank you," Saylee said gratefully, following him inside. "We'd love to!"

{}

"I've been meaning to ask, Ethan…" Saylee asked over dinner, "who was that lady with you in Violet? The one in the traditional dress?"

"Miss Zuki?" Ethan said. "She said she was from Ecruteak and was in the area visiting someone when she saw a fairy!" He pointed at the door to the hallway.

Down the hall, Saylee's Pokémon were eating in the huge nursery room with the Pokémon that Ethan's grandparents were caring for. There just wasn't room for any of them with Saylee and Ethan's family; the kitchen, dining room and living room were all one little room, with a low table folding down out of the wall and onto the small square of floor between the television set into the wall across from the kitchenette. Saylee and Ethan were both sitting halfway into the hall to fit on one side of the table, with Ethan's grandparents sitting with their backs to the kitchenette, half-watching the news on the TV.

Ethan's granny turned the TV down and turned to Saylee. "A woman from Ecruteak in traditional dress?" she asked curiously. "Maybe she was a geisha!"

"Oooh, really?" Ethan said excitedly around a mouthful of pomeg. His granddad reached over with his fork, tapping his grandson under the chin to get him to close his mouth.

"What's a geisha?" Saylee asked.

"Women's cult," Ethan's grandpa chuckled, waving a napkin at Ethan.

"Now, now," his wife chastised him. "They're very beautiful women, all of them. They're very strict about their dress and behaviour. They train for years behind closed doors, from when they're little girls, before they debut as geisha. Got all these rituals and superstitions. They all make a living by putting on performances, plays and dancing and storytelling and suchlike. They can tell fortunes and give blessings and charms, too, and they're very knowledgeable about fairy tales and myths. You could say they're a type of priestess, since they're said to perform services for the gods… but you know, I honestly don't know what that entails, aside from their amazing Langnight dances. Well, they're a secretive lot."

"They said that Ethan was born in a lucky year," Ethan's grandpa added. "We've been to quite a few of their shows, and afterwards Ethan always gets good blessings and fortunes. His fortunes feature water a lot, so we thought he and Marina would be a good fit, and it turns out we were right!"

"I wanna train more water Pokémon, but dad won't let me leave to be a trainer yet," Ethan huffed.

"We promised we'd let you know if we got any abandoned water Pokémon that need a good home, Ethan," his grandma said, "but you know, not that many people abandon their Pokémon, thank goodness. And, well, Goldenrod's such a big city, there's always someone up for adopting abandoned Pokémon!"

"That's lovely," Saylee said, smiling. "Um… can I borrow some paper and a pen after dinner? I'd like to write a letter."

{}

"Who're you wroitin' to, moy love?" Georgia asked, trying to peer around Saylee's arm. Wendy grabbed Georgia's arm with her hind legs and tried to pull her away, shaking her head and muttering about rudeness. Georgia allowed herself to be towed away and waited patiently for Saylee's response.

"My mum back in Kanto," Saylee said. "I haven't written home in a while… I owe her a letter." She signed it and folded it up, writing her mother's name on the front. "Hmm… now one to Chaz and your parents, I think, Toby. I'll tell them all about how much stronger you've gotten."

"Tell them all about everyone too!" Tobias insisted. "Chip an' Mary an' everyone! They're our friends now!"

"You're right," Saylee said with a smile, beginning to write. "I bet Chaz'll like to hear about you, Wendy. We never got to see Wilma evolve, after all…" the smile faded, but she didn't stop writing. "Mary, Holly, Chip, none of your kind live in Kanto. Everyone'll want to hear about you."

"Ask about Brock too!" Tobias said. "Did I tell you? Pewter's got the fossil cloning machine now! They asked Chaz for some of his DNA to try cloning Charmander, 'cause Chaz's one of the only Charizard left, but I dunno if he said yes!"

"Really?" Saylee said in surprise. "Wow… he'd kind of be a dad, then, wouldn't he?" she grinned. "He'd make a great dad. I just hope they can find some other Char DNA… one Charizard is a pretty small gene pool."

"What's a gene pool?" Chip asked.

"Genes are what you get from your parents that make you _you_," Saylee said, trying to figure out how to ask Chaz about the cloning. "You get your mother's genes and your father's and they mix up to make you. For example, my mother has blue eyes, and I got her blue eye gene, so I do too. But my big brother has red eyes, so he must have gotten them from our dad. And if you have a kid, then your child will have genes from you and genes from your mate, and they'll mix up to make somebody entirely new. If I have a baby, they might have blue eyes, but their eyes might be the same colour as my husband's instead…"

"If you marry Blue, you could have a baby with green eyes, right?" Tobias said brightly. Saylee dropped her pen.

"Well… yes, I could," she said, scrabbling to pick the pen up and finish her letter. Georgia and Wendy exchanged looks.

"Who's Blue then, moy love?" Georgia asked.

"Is he nice?" Wendy asked. "Good-looking? I'm sure I don't know what passes for it in a human, but—"

"He's a cocky, arrogant jerk who's always trying to tell me what to do," Saylee insisted. "And he's kinda dumb when he's angry, he'll rush into stuff and get himself hurt, and he's _always_ around even if I don't want him to be, and he _always _steals _all_ of the chesto berries…"

"He sounds like an awful person," Holly said.

"He's not!" Saylee said quickly. "I mean… he's alright, sometimes, I guess. He can be kinda cool and he's a good trainer, but that just inflates his big head even more, and we've known each other since we were kid so he knows all the best ways to annoy me—"

"Calm doon, dinnae panic," Mary sniggered. "Ye never said if he's a cute yin or naw…"

"Aaaargh…" Saylee thumped her head down onto the desk where she was writing the letter. She felt Chip brushing against her leg.

"If he's bein' your friend, Lee," he said softly, sitting down next to her, "shouldn't you be writin' him a letter too?"

Saylee didn't answer, opting to finish her letter to Chaz. Still, before she went to bed, she sent three letters to Pallet through the portpad, and a fourth with some money to Vera.

{}

Goldenrod was _huge_, larger even than Saffron, or maybe it just looked that way due to the state of the buildings. There was not a pile of rubble nor a dilapidated shack to be seen. In Saffron, the skyline was dominated by the huge Silph building; perhaps once there had been other buildings as large, but now they were collapsed, in ruins.

In Goldenrod, there were dozens of multi-story buildings, and everything looked sleek and in good repair.

Saylee and Georgia both gaped. Ethan's grandparents had warned her that a city ordinance permitted only one Pokémon trained for battle to be out of its pokéball at a time, and Saylee had selected Georgia because of the rumours of gangs hanging out in the underground shopping tunnel. Georgia was the least unusual or recognizable of her Pokémon, so if the gangs were Rocket, she'd be able to sneak back out unnoticed and get her Pokémon from Pallet.

Besides, she could do with some bonding time with Georgia. She got the distinct impression that the rock-type didn't trust her, and it wasn't without reason.

She decided to start by asking a police officer that she saw standing outside of a large concrete building in the middle of the city with the words "POLICE STATION" over the door. The man was wearing the same dark blue uniform as the police officer that had come to Professor Elm's lab, and appeared to be on guard duty, standing at attention by the door with a Growlithe sitting by his ankle. The man had a golden, shield-shaped badge pinned to the front of his uniform, and the Growlithe had a similar shield hanging around its neck. Another shield was on the door, with the words "_Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity_" carved into it. The shield was on the small police station in Cherrygrove, Saylee recalled, a building barely larger than a hut, and the larger building next to the school in Violet. The Johto police were a unified force, similar to the police officers in the Sevii Islands but, from the looks of it, with better resources and more manpower. The closest thing the Kanto mainland had to a police force was the trainers taught by Lt Surge, but they were relatively few in number and not particularly co-ordinated.

"There's your 'gang' right there," the officer said when Saylee asked him, pointing to a gaggle of pale, skinny teenage boys sitting in front of the casino, drinking something out of a bottle in a paper bag. "They've done a few jail stints for mugging, but they're all just a bunch of stupid kids."

"Don't let that paper bag fool you, I don't smell any alcohol," the Growlithe reported. "Smells like soda pop. Guess they think it makes them look grown up or something. Don't even get why human adults drink alcohol, it just stinks and makes them act like idiots."

"Those kids are idiots anyway," the officer sighed, shaking his head. "Don't hesitate to call on us if you have any problems while you're here in the city, miss; though with a tough-looking Geodude like yours, I'm sure you'll be fine." He winked at Georgia.

"Excuse me, but what's that?" Saylee pointed to the screen next to the police station door. Several faces were displayed on it, some photographs, some sketches. Saylee touched one sketch, of a man with green hair, and the image filled up the screen. Some details about dress and mannerisms appeared next to the picture.

"Wanted criminals," the officer said. "I guess the smaller stations don't have an update screen, huh? That one's a nasty one. Held a whole town hostage by kidnapping their Slowpoke and… well, I'm sure you don't want all the gory details."

"My cousin Ger works in Azaela," the Growlithe commented. "He was complaining about how hard it is to a get a scent track for that guy, what with all the rain. If you see him, miss, do us a favour and give us a call. Preferably somewhere dry."

"I will, don't worry," Saylee said. "Thank you!" She took her leave, ignoring a few catcalls from the teenagers as she walked past them, heading for the nearest Underground entrance. They shut up when Georgia produced a large stone from somewhere and casually snapped it in half. "Nice to see how on the ball the police are here. So, since we have some free time, Ethan's granny says there's a really good salon down here. What do you say to some pampering?"

"Don't sound 'alf bad t'me!" Georgia said. "Too bad we din't get a good foight, eh?"

"You make it sound like I _like_ getting into fights with lowlifes," Saylee said, looking around. The Underground mall was brightly-lit, though slightly claustrophobic, with the ceiling only eight feet up and a fairly narrow concourse with shop fronts lining either side. They walked past an apothecary, a clothing store and a bargain store, peering through the plate-glass windows at the things on sale. "There we go! _Fabulous Brothers_ salon!" She negotiated a polish for Georgia and sat to watch while a young man with long purple hair in a ponytail started smoothing at the cracks and chips in Georgia's hide with some kind of sand. His badge said "Hello, I am _FAB JR_!" so Saylee assumed that he was the younger of the Fabulous Brothers.

"Don't loike gettin' into foights, eh?" Georgia chuckled. "That whoi you do it all th' toime?"

"I don't like it, I'm just good at it," Saylee said with a shrug. "Besides, if you think I'm good at it, you should meet Red. He could get pretty pissed off about people just complaining about or ignoring a problem. 'If you just get up and deal with it, you could have it done in a fraction of the time you spend whining!'"

"That whoi you can never keep your nose out of business, is it?" Georgia asked.

"Does it bother you?" Saylee said cautiously. "I can take you home if you want. You don't have to stay with me—"

"Oi know, you've said," Georgia said, rolling her eyes. "A _lot_. If it's all the same to you, oi'll keep travellin'. Oi got me some good mates here, an' oi quite loikes seein' the above ground. Plenty o' Pokémon go out with a trainer sooner or later; whoi do you keep assumin' we don't want to be with you?"

"It's a long story," Saylee said mournfully.

"You said you weren't goin' t' keep things from us anymore," Georgia said severely.

"I'm not—" Saylee looked around. The man who was polishing Georgia was away manicuring a Growlithe's claws while he was waiting for Georgia's polish to set. An older man with spiky purple hair was carefully grooming a Furret's fur while its trainer chatted incessantly about a new TV show. The brightly-decorated salon was otherwise empty, and while it wasn't large (though the huge mirror that covered one entire wall made it look twice the size), nobody was particularly near to Saylee and Georgia. "Call it inherited cultural guilt. Kanto got into _war_ between humans and Pokémon, did you know?"

"Oi did hear somethin' loike that from 'dudes comin' through the mountains," Georgia admitted. "'umans with no respect, they said. Lee, oi don't doubt that you respect your Pokémon… oi just ain't sure that you think of us as _yours_."

"I just don't want to get you involved…" Saylee said helplessly.

"You keep tellin' us 'bout danger," Georgia said, placing her hand on Saylee's arm. "We_ seen _danger in Azaela. An' we're still 'ere. You ain't makin' that decision for us, alroight? An' respect yourself a little more too, moy love."

"What do you mean?" Saylee asked, taking the return of the endearment as a good sign.

"Stop fearin' you're goin' to fail all the toime," Georgia said, watching the groomer return. "That Silver lad moight be a damn good trainer, but there's a reason you keep beatin' 'im."

{}

"By the Birds… here too?!"

Saylee'd heard about the road from Violet to Goldenrod being blocked, but she hadn't realized that it included the Goldenrod to Ecruteak road too. The road was completely blocked by what looked like a solid wall of trees, but no amount of fire from Chip did a thing to them. Saylee's Pokédex told her they were Sudowoodo, a rock-type Pokémon.

"Wait… Frederick said something about them migrating," Saylee muttered. "Just about the only thing that can piss them off or move them is water…"

"But none of us know water moves, do we?" Wendy asked. Saylee shook her head. They started to walk back to Goldenrod.

"Marina's a water-type, though," Chip pointed out. "We could be goin' t'get her help…"

"We could go ask," Saylee agreed, somewhat reluctantly. "Georgia, do you know anything about Sudowoodo? Like if they're violent when roused?"

"Oi should think most folk would be," Georgia said, "'specially since it looks like they're goin' into fall 'oibernation. But it shouldn't be much we can't 'andle, oi'm sure."

"Hey! I smell flowers!" Holly said brightly, spinning her flower and drifting over a fence on the edge of the city. Saylee ran around it to find herself at a flower shop. They were near the edge of the city, so it was a small one-level building rather than the multi-story department stores that were all over the city centre. There was even a small garden in front of the shop, planted with neat arrays of brightly-coloured flowers.

_People _sell_ flowers?_ Saylee thought in confusion, returning her other Pokémon before following Holly inside. Seeing the shop had reminded her of the city ordinance against multiple trained Pokémon per person. _Such nice flowers grow wild here…_

"Hello and welcome!" said a young woman as they walked it. She was pouring water over some potted flowers. Saylee revised her previous position; the flowers in the shop were in a range of vibrant colours that she'd never even _seen_ before and ranged in size from larger than Saylee's head to impossibly tiny and delicate. They were arranged in pots and buckets all over the floor and in long trays on tables all over the room. There was a clear counter by the entrance, with a stool tucked under it. There was another table behind it, this one covered in wrapping paper, ribbons and little decorated cards. "Can I help you?"

"Mmmm, it smells nice," Holly said, sitting on the edge of the flowerpot and stealing a drink from the woman's watering can. "Ooooh! Tastes wonderful too!"

"It's my special plant formula," the woman laughed, tucking a few errant strands of auburn hair under her hairband. "Plants love it, so I'm not surprised that you do too." She frowned. "My little sister tried watering that copse of trees blocking the road north with it, though, and she got attacked. Everyone's staying away from the trees now…"

"I couldn't borrow a can of that, could I?" Saylee said. "I'm quite a good trainer myself. If I could wake up those treelike Pokémon, I could drive them away."

"Oh… my sister broke her arm, you know," the shopkeeper said uncomfortably, quickly turning back to watering flowers. "I really don't think I could in good conscience…"

"I have my Pokémon, I'll be fine," Saylee insisted, but her heart sank as the woman shook her head.

"Even Whitney's scared to face them, and she's the best trainer in Goldenrod!" the woman declared.

"_Really_," Saylee said thoughtfully. "Tell me, where can I find Whitney?"

"She's the leader of the Pokémon club down the road," the woman said, pointing out the door. "You can't miss it. More pink than you've ever seen in your life even before you step inside the building." Saylee nodded. She recalled the large, garish building quite vividly.

"Holly—" she said, and then sighed as she spotted Holly happily snuggled up among a bucket of flowers, fast asleep. "I don't think I can bear to wake her…"

"When she wakes up, I'll tell her where you've gone," the woman offered.

"I won't be gone long," Saylee promised.

{}

"This is a social club for trainers of _cute_ Pokémon," the girl said snootily. She was probably the same age as Saylee, but she was very flashily dressed and made up. He looked good, but the kinda of good that looked like it could be wiped off with a wet towel, and her blonde hair looked downright unnatural. She was cuddling and brushing the curls of a similarly snooty-looking Jigglypuff, pointedly only looking at Saylee out of the corner of its eyes as if she had crawled out of a puddle of slime.

"Toby," Saylee said, letting him out of his pokéball, "why don't you ask the lady if we can see Whitney?" She snuggled him securely in her arms.

"Can we, _please_?" Tobias asked, smiling sweetly at the girl. She melted on the spot.

"C'mon _in_!" She said, holding the door open. "Oh, isn't he just _darling_? I'm sorry, I didn't think you looked like you trained sweet Pokémon," she added, eying the burnt patches on Saylee's jacket and her heavy tights critically.

"I just like training Pokémon," Saylee said, smiling thinly. "I heard Whitney was good. I'd like to battle her. Can I?"

"A fighter?" A girl of about fourteen said, hopping off of a couch where she and a friend were comparing Meowth. There were dozens of low, plush couches and beanbags spread across the room, around low tea tables and potted plants. The walls were bedecked with flowers and pink bows, and through the open-plan doors to other rooms, Saylee could see a similarly endless variety of pink décor and giggling girls clutching cute Pokémon. "Hey, not just _anybody_ gets to fight Whitney! You'll have to go through us first!"

"Gladly." Saylee released Wendy, making several of the girls scream and flee into other rooms.

"How very rude," Wendy commented. The girl with the Meowth had stood her ground, though she was wrinkling her nose at Wendy.

"Well then," Saylee said with a smile, "why don't you use rock smash to teach them some manners?"

{}

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_Apologies for the long break between updates. I working a ton over New Year's. There's been work, there've been technical difficulties, and when Pokémon X and Y were announced all my brain functions shut down in favour of squeeing. Fully 3D-renderd environments and Pokémon? A region based on France? FENNEKIN, THE CUTEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN?! I've already decided to get version X solely for __the Great Forest Spirit__ Xerneas :P_

_I know they're called Kimono Girls in the game, but I'm calling them Geisha here because they so blatantly are. Only here, they do a lot more with their lives than brightening up parties and being a rich man's fashionable mistress. _

_Also, I can't believe I've made it this far into the game without a single death. On the other hand, I'm about to fight Whitney's Miltank, Bringer of Doom and Destruction. I hate that thing, can you tell?_


	11. Chapter 10

_Pokémon: 11 Deaths: 0_

"Well, aren't _you_ good?"

"She certainly is," Saylee said, patting Wendy on the back of the head as the huge insect buzzed back to her trainer's side, leaving an unconscious Teddiursa in her wake. The Teddiursa's trainer, a curly-haired girl with truly improbable-looking heels, scooped her Pokémon up and tottered over to a healing machine set into a flowery tea table. "Are you Whitney?"

"I am!" Whitney was probably older than Saylee, but dressed in a frilly white shirt and shorts that made her look several years younger, and it looked like wearing her shocking pink hair in pigtails was her _preferred_ style. The Clefairy at her heels was wearing hair accessories that matched her trainer's. "So, you wanna earn a club badge, huh?"

"Anyone who beats Whitney gets a club badge and honorary membership," the girl that Saylee had just beaten said, catching Saylee's confused look. "They don't get handed out often!"

"That's right!" Whitney said smugly. "I might look cute, but don't let that fool you! So, who are you?" She beckoned Saylee through another arched doorway to the largest room yet. This one had no couches, no tea tables, no potted plants, just a vast, clear expanse of pink-and-yellow chequered floor with a large purple flower design on the floor at either end of the room, about twenty metres apart. Whitney turned right and walked towards the flower at that end of the room. Saylee headed for the opposite flower.

"I'm Lyra," Saylee said, "and this is Wendy and Toby. I'm here for a battle!"

"Lee, can I have a go?" Tobias begged. "Watching Wendy fight's been _exciting_! I want a go! I think I can!" He hopped out of Saylee's arms and ran forward to face Whitney's Clefairy.

"He's so _cute_!" Whitney squealed. "But that won't stop us beating him! Doubleslap, Courtney!"

"Toby, use Metronome!" Saylee ordered, hoping for the best. Tobias had grown a lot stronger, but that didn't help the unpredictability of metronome. He waved his hands and stood completely still as nothing happened. Courtney slapped him twice across the face. "Toby! Wendy, go take over for—"

"I'm fine!" Tobias yelled. "Just… a bit… NOW!"

Courtney had drawn back her arm to slap him again, but the blow never landed. She was blown backwards by a blast of golden-green energy. "Courtney!" Whitney cried. "What was _that_?"

"Solarbeam!" Saylee cheered. "Brilliant, Toby! Now finish her off with Extrasensory!"

Tobias' eyes glowed purple. Courtney, struggling to her feet, wailed and keeled over again.

"I did it! I WON!" Tobias cried euphorically, jumping up and down on the spot. "My first big battle all by myself and I WON!"

"We saw," Wendy said, flitting over to him. "Very well done, Tobias." Tobias leapt on the spot again and kept on rising.

"Toby?" Saylee said, running over and trying to catch him in the air. Small wings unfolded, brushing past her fingers as she caught him. Tobias threw back his head to cheer and his neck stretched out. "Toby… I think you just evolved!"

Tobias peered down at himself and yelped in surprise. His whole body was now eggshell white, his shell itself gone. The red and blue patterns had remained as patterns on his fine down, something odd between fur and feathers. His neck was elongated, as were his arms and legs, and when Saylee let him go, two little white wings kept him aloft.

"Check it _out_!" He yelled excitedly, zooming around. "I can _fly_!"

"Look at you go!" Wendy said warmly as he flew in circles around her, laughing the whole way.

"How cool!" Whitney said excitedly, jumping up and down on the spot. Courtney had vanished, probably returned to her pokéball. "I wonder if it'll help you beat Maci!" She flung out a Great Ball, revealing her second Pokémon.

Saylee recognized Miltank from the herd she'd seen on Boon Island. They were large and sturdy Pokémon whose milk had extraordinary healing capacities. Maci, however, was clearly a fighter rather than a farmer. She was larger and less fatty than most Miltank that Saylee had seen, and her horns were sharper and more prominent.

"I can take her!" Tobias said excitedly, flying forwards. "Let me go again!"

"No, Toby," Saylee said gently, snatching him out of the air. "You've just evolved. We don't know enough about what you can do yet. Just sit tight and let Wendy have first crack at this one, okay?" Wendy nodded and flew to the front.

"Rollout!" Whitney cried.

"Rock Smash!" Saylee countered.

Maci curled up and rolled towards Wendy. As she struck, Wendy smashed at her with one of her steel-hard stings. They passed each other, both looking a little worse for wear. Maci turned and rolled back at Wendy, faster this time. When the two clashed again, Maci was hurt again but Wendy was knocked out of the sky.

"Oooh, it doesn't look like she can take another hit!" Whitney giggled. "And it just gets stronger every time!"

"Wendy, get back!" Saylee ordered. "Georgia, take over!" As Georgia materialized, she gasped at the sight of Wendy flying limply back to Saylee for healing. While she was looking at Wendy, the third powerful strike hit Georgia in the side.

Maci bounced off of the sturdy rock-type and barely left a scratch.

"What was that meant t'be, then?" Georgia asked, staring after her.

"Magnitude, now!" Saylee called. Georgia nodded, slamming her fists into the ground hard enough to shake the whole room. A couple of girls shrieked, and there was the sound of china breaking somewhere behind Saylee. Maci, in the middle of her fourth charge, wobbled off-course as the ground rumbled beneath her. She missed Georgia entirely, slamming hard into the wall instead.

"Finish it with Rock Throw!" Saylee commanded. Georgia immediately struck Maci with a vicious barrage of stones, not ceasing until the large Miltank was out cold.

"Brilliant! Well done, Georgia!" Saylee said happily as Georgia floated back over to them.

"'Ow you feelin', moy love?" she said, watching Saylee spray potion onto Wendy's bruises and slightly bent wing.

"Just fine, thank you," Wendy said gratefully. "I am sorry that I couldn't finish her myself."

"Not a trouble, moy love," Georgia said warmly. "An' look at you, Toby! You are Toby, ain't you?"

"I am! Check it out!" Tobias said proudly, spinning in the air in front of her. "Look! I can fly!"

"No, no, no, _no_, _NO!"_

Saylee was shocked to see Whitney return Maci and launch into a tantrum. Fat tears were running down her cheeks while the girl stomped her foot and howled like a child.

"You meanie!" Whitney screamed, pointing at Saylee. "I HATE you!"

Saylee was taken aback. "How old _are_ you?"

"Get out, get out, get OUT!" Whitney sobbed, pointing in the direction of the door. "I HATE you, I hate you, I HATE YOU!"

The girls who had hung around to watch were all shaking their heads. One walked over to talk to Saylee. "This is Whitney's club and she's a really good trainer and all…" she sighed, "but she can be a bit of a baby when she loses."

"How do I calm her down?" Saylee asked helplessly.

"We just wait for her to cry herself out, normally," the girl said with a shrug. Whitney was now lying flat out on the floor, pounding it with her heels and fists and howling. "It can take an hour or two sometimes."

"I'd rather not dawdle that long," Saylee said, walking over to Whitney. She reached down to grab Whitney's arm and hauled her to her feet, ignoring the girl's indignant screech.

"Would you _wheesht_?" Saylee barked at her. Whitney was so startled that she stopped howling, falling into silent tears and hiccups. "Good lass. Okay, how old are you?"

"It's her twentieth soon," the girl from before supplied when Whitney seemed unlikely to speak. "We're throwing a big party!"

"Twenty-year-olds don't get to bawl like babies!" Saylee said sharply. "Grow _up_! Your Pokémon need to be taken to be healed properly right now, and so do mine, not left to lie while you throw a tantrum!"

"Well sor_ry_," Whitney muttered sullenly. Saylee let her go.

"Tell that to your Pokémon, not me," she said, holding out her hand. "Now, somebody said something about a badge?"

{}

"Oh, my!" the flower lady said delightedly when Saylee showed her the bright pin. "You beat Whitney!"

"Nearly got made the new club leader, too," Saylee said, pinning the badge onto her bag strap next to the pass emblems from Falkner and Bugsy. The girls at the club hadn't been able to stop squealing about how "cool" she was for being able to calm Whitney down, and she'd all but had to make Chip throw up a smokescreen to get away. "I'd ask again about the plant formula, but to be honest it's getting pretty dark…"

"I know," the woman sighed, looking outside. "I'm afraid that we're just going to be getting less and less light for the next couple of months. Why don't you stay here tonight? I've got some spare bedding, and…" she smiled at Holly, who was floating happily through the flowers, her own yellow petals brighter than ever. "Your Holly's been telling me all about you, Lyra. My name's Prim."

"Nice to meet you," Saylee said gratefully, shaking her hand. "If it's not a bother…"

"It's not," Prim assured her. "It'll be a boon, actually. Holly seems to love my flowers, and they love her back."

{}

"Oh, damn… I'm no good at this," Saylee sighed, reaching for an eraser to rub away her drawing. "I'm terrible at this. Red was always better at drawing than me. Professor Oak put some of his drawings of Pokémon in the Pokédex image archive…"

"What're you tryin' to draw?" Chip asked, peering over her arm.

"Toby," Saylee said, pointing her pencil, through the door between the spare room and the shop, at the little white Pokémon flying happily around the room with Holly. Wendy was sipping at a bouquet of daisies while Georgia and Mary chatted about Tobias' evolution. "I want to show his parents what he looks like now… they'll be so proud of him."

"They'll git tae see 'im soon enough, though, aye?" Mary said, looking over. "Soon as you find they Rockets, anyway…"

Saylee's pokégear rang. "It's Mr Pokémon," Saylee said in surprise, picking it up. "Hello?"

"_Ah, Saylee! Hope you don't mind my call, my dear, but I've got a piece of news that may be of interest to you._"

"Shoot," Saylee said, setting the phone between her shoulder and ear to hold it in place while she continued trying to draw Tobias. "Red or Rockets?"

"_I'm afraid there's still no sign of your brother, nor anyone resembling him. His Pokémon are rather distinctive, so unless he's been hiding them…_"

"You've said," Saylee sighed. "So, Rockets, then?"

"_Possibly, possibly… well, you did ask about anything unusual_._ Anyway, I don't know if you've heard, but the sickness in the Olivine area is reaching epidemic proportions. It's not natural, whatever it is. On top of that, something odd's going on in the sea around that area… there's a large influx of water Pokémon even as every other type is leaving the area. Might be worth checking into, eh?_"

"It might," Saylee agreed. "Thanks a lot. I'm going to try to clear out that copse of Sudowoodo tomorrow, so that road shall be open soon."

"_Many thanks, my dear! I shall tell Frederick; it shall be nice for him to know that the path shall be clear before winter arrives. Safe travel!" _He hung and Saylee shrugged to let the phone drop onto the bedding.

"So what's goin' on then, moy love?" Georgia asked.

"We're going to Olivine as soon as the path's clear," Saylee said, giving up on the drawing and picking up her pokégear again to read the map. "We'll head west from Ecruteak. It's a few day's travel, but…"

"Ma maw lives in Olivine!" Mary said happily. "Cannae wait tae show 'er I've evolved!"

"I can't wait to show Mummy and Daddy that I can _fly_," Tobias happily. "Neither of them can fly! I'm like Chaz!"

"I looked up Togepi in the Pokédex," Saylee told him, opening the little red device to show him. "It's only really fairy tales and data it read on you, but it says that the name for flying Togepi is Togetic. Says you bring joy and happiness to good souls and can grant blessings and charms…"

"_Cool_," Tobias said, flitting around to look at the pictures. Most of them were from old storybooks, pictures of Togetic playing with children and protecting large groups of Togepi. "Mummy taught me some prayers and things, but they're all for guiding the dead…"

"That's very clever," Wendy said. "Of course, I'm sure you shan't need them."

"I certainly hope not," Saylee agreed, digging around to find her dreamcatcher to hang up.

"What is that?" Holly asked. "I saw you putting it away some mornings in the forest…"

"Just… things," Saylee said, straightening the singed pink feather. "Talismans and mementoes. This spoon… it belonged to a Kadabra I trained. The coin was a Hypno, the feather… Pedro…"

"He was a Pidgeot, right?" Tobias said quietly. "Chaz still talks about him. I think he misses him."

"I'm sure he does," Saylee said, running a finger down the soft feather. "I still do."

"They all bit it?" Mary said, looking at the objects. "I'm sorry. That's a sin an' a half."

"It happens," Saylee said, wrapping her arms around Chip and Tobias as they leaned against her for support. _But not to you. Never to you._

{}

"Oi! Wake up!" Mary shouted. When the Sudowoodo didn't move or respond, she looked at Saylee and shook her head. "Nothin' doin'. I had tae try."

"Looks like we have to do this the hard way, then," Saylee said, handing the watering can that Prim had given to them over to Tobias. "Just sprinkle them lightly. We don't want to piss them off too much, just get them to move. But, well, if they do get pissed off…" she looked at Holly, Wendy and Georgia. "You three are the front line, got it?"

"Roight you are, moy love," Georgia said, cracking her knuckles. Tobias flew up into the air and over the copse of Sudowoodo, sprinkling plant mix in his wake.

The effect was immediate. The Sudowoodo began to shudder, wailing and shaking at the touch of the mixture. Most of them began to move out of the way of the mix, wandering in among the thick, real trees that hemmed in the path, but the biggest would not move. Instead, it began to fling the bulbous green rocks that were masquerading as bunches of leaves at Tobias, trying to knock him and the watering can out of the sky.

"Toby!" Saylee shouted. "Holly, use Bullet Seed on the big one! Wendy, back her up with Rock Smash! Georgia, keep the rest moving with Magnitude!"

Georgia dodged around the big Sudowoodo, slamming her fists into the ground. Holly opened fire. The big Sudowoodo shook.

"Go a_way_!" he shouted, flinging rocks at her instead of Tobias. "Let us hibernate in peace!"

"We will once you hibernate somewhere else!" Saylee shouted. "You're cutting off half the continent! People need to get through! Please just move!"

"Hell no! You attacked me!" he shouted, flinging rocks at Wendy and Holly as they attacked him again.

"No, we woke you up," Wendy corrected him. "_You_ attacked _us_—AAH!"

"Wendy!" Saylee shouted as a rock knocked Wendy down. Her heart nearly stopped as the rock slammed into the ground, pinning Wendy's wing.

"WENDY!" Georgia shouted, turning away from the fleeing copse of Sudowoodo and assaulting the leader. "You ain't gettin' away with that!" She grabbed the large Sudowoodo hard enough to wrench it right out of the ground and flung it away into the trees. She didn't look to see where it had gone, but instead went straight over to Wendy to wrench the boulder off of her wing. "You alroight, moy dear?"

"I am sorry," Wendy muttered as Saylee checked over her wing. "That's the second time in as many days that you've come to my rescue…"

"Always will, moy dear," Georgia said warmly. "T'ain't nothin'."

"Yes it is," Wendy murmured weakly. "Thank you…"

"I'll return you until we can get you to a clinic, Wendy," Saylee said, holding out her pokéball. Wendy nodded, slumping over in Georgia's arms just before vanishing.

"You got to be more careful with her, moy love," Georgia said sternly to Saylee. "Bugs ain't very tough."

"Wendy is," Saylee said, "but you're right. She'll be at her best against psychics or grass types. I'll probably start keeping her in reserve for that."

"Lee?" Chip called from between the trees. "I don't think Wendy's the only one needin' medical help…"

{}

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_How in the name of Thor did I get past That Miltank without death? It was damn close with Wendy, but then Georgia rolled in and it was all over. Georgia's generally the one I call in to cover for Wendy when unexpected rock moves happen or Rock Smash doesn't work as well as I'd hoped. Actually, Georgia rescues Wendy a _lot_. It's pretty awesome._

_Also, since s/he reviewed as a guest, I'd like to take this space to thank the enthusiastic Alex for all of your reviews. I'm sorry for absorbing your finals week XD But thank you for enjoying these fics so much (especially the comment about being excited as a five-year-old; that's still a feeling that Pokémon has given me my whole life. It's something I love and something that I hope will always bring this much fun to my life. I'm glad I can bring up that feeling in others :) ) In general, I'd like to heartily thank everyone who reviews. It really does make my day to see that people enjoy reading these. Thank you! _


	12. Chapter 11

_Pokémon: 12 Deaths: 0_

"Your Nidorino's going to be alright," the nurse told Saylee. "He got a little trampled, but Nidorino have very tough hides and he'll heal up just fine."

"Oh, he's not mine," Saylee said. "We found him after the stampede and brought him here for treatment. He's wild. My Beedrill, though, how about her? Can I see her right now?"

"She'll need a couple of days," the nurse sighed. "She's just coming out of reconstructive surgery on her wing right now. If it's gone well, she'll be out tomorrow evening." He smiled. "It's truly amazing, isn't it, a Pokémon's ability to heal?"

"Thank you so much," Saylee said in relief. "I'm glad she'll be okay. I'll come back tomorrow, can I see her then?"

"Of course," the nurse promised. "Now, I have to go check up on some of my other patients, so if you'll excuse me…" he grabbed a clipboard off of the reception countertop and headed off. Saylee turned and headed across the lobby to the exit. The Goldenrod Pokémon clinic was larger than most, with a whole two floors of intensive care rooms and surgeries. Pokémon had such a capacity to heal that Pokémon clinics tended to be a fraction of the size of human hospitals and staffed predominantly by nurses.

Saylee stepped out of the door and released Chip. "Wendy and the Nidorino are going to be alright," she told him. "We can pick Wendy up tomorrow evening."

"That's brill!" Chip said happily. "So what'll we be doin' 'till then?"

"We'd better go ask Prim if we can stay here tonight," Saylee said. "I feel bad about taking advantage of her hospitality for too long. We'll take a break for tonight, but sometime tomorrow there's someplace I need to check out," she added with a growl.

"Where?" Chip asked, confused by Saylee's dark tone.

{}

"It's just a casino," Saylee sighed in relief, looking over the selection of toys and gadgets available as prizes in the Goldenrod Game Corner.

"'Course it be," Chip said, confused. "The folk outside was sayin', weren't they?"

"Yeah, well…" Saylee peered suspiciously under a couple of posters, ignoring the reproachful looks she was getting from the staff. "Let's get going, then."

"Goin'?" Chip asked, scurrying after her. "Don't you want t'be stayin' an' playin' awhiles?"

"Nah," Saylee said, shaking her head. "Even if it is just a casino, it creeps me out a little."

"Well, what else are we goin' t'be doin'?" Chip asked as they strode down the streets of Goldenrod. "We done our trainin' for today, Wendy an' that Nidorino aren't bein' out 'til t'night…"

"Let's go see how Holly's doing," she said, heading towards the flower shop again. Holly had been overjoyed to find out that they were staying in Goldenrod for a couple of days; she loved playing in the flower shop, and Prim loved her. It was midway through autumn, and her flowers had been ailing without Holly's influence on them.

"Look! Look!" Holly said brightly as they stepped inside, floating over with a bucket of flowers in her grip. "They really like me! I got them to make such pretty colours!"

"I've never seen daisies grow in that colour before," Prim said with a smile, taking the bucket of purple blooms, "but I've never had a Skiploom around before. I've heard that they have a wonderful influence on flowers, but never like this…"

"It seems to be doing you some good, too," Saylee said, reaching out to touch the scars that were still embedded in Holly's side under her huge ears. "These are looking much better."

"I like it here," Holly said happily. She wilted a little. "Oh… but we're leaving tomorrow, aren't we? Once Wendy's all better?"

"We are," Saylee agreed, glancing at Chip, "but you could stay, if you want."

"Really?" Holly couldn't suppress a bright smile. "I'd love to… but… I'd miss you all… and I want to come fight Team Rocket with you, to be _strong_…"

"Holly, you _are_ strong," Saylee said, scooping Holly out of the air and into her arms. "You don't have to be a fighter. Look at these beautiful flowers!"

"Winter is coming, yet you're keeping them _alive_," Prim agreed. "That's an amazing power, Holly. If you want to stay here, I'd love to have you. I could really use your help."

"You can decide tomorrow," Saylee told Holly. "But you have nothing to prove to scum like Team Rocket, understand? _We_ think what you can do here is… beautiful."

"An' don't we be matterin' more than them wastes o' air?" Chip asked. Holly nodded, snuggling into Saylee's arms.

"…I'll miss you," she said quiely. Saylee kissed her on the forehead.

"We'll miss you too," she said. "But we're friends. So we'll see you again. When we do, you'll have to show us all the beautiful flowers you've grown!"

{}

"Hold it! Where do you think you're going without me?"

Saylee nearly tripped over the purple shape that ran past her ankles and skidded around to face her on the way out of Goldenrod. "You're that Nidorino, aren't you? Don't you need to go home?"

"It's Nider, and that ain't exactly happenin'," Nider said, tossing his head, "'cause my herd was runnin' from those damn Sudowoodo and they'll be long gone by now, balls if I know where. 'Sides, I hate the alpha. Got his head so far up his own ass his horn's coming out his mouth."

"So… are you sayin' you want t'be comin' with us?" Chip asked in surprise.

"Sure, why not?" Nider said, looking from him to Saylee. "Not like I got a crapload of options, and you guys saved my ass. Plus, heard you tellin' that Beedrill that you're one down, so you've got some free space, am I right?"

"Well, I suppose if you really want to…" Saylee knelt down in front of him. "Nice to meet you, Nider. I'm Lyra and this is Chip. Before you come with us, there's a few things that you have to know…" she glanced up at the sky. "We've got a couple of hours until sunset. Long enough to get to the park and get a campsite. I'll tell you there."

"Dunno if I'm meant to be worried or not by that," Nider said, falling into step behind her.

"D'you mind bein' stickin' your nose into bad guys' business t'be kickin' their arses?" Chip asked.

"I like the kicking ass part," Nider said with a grin.

"Then you'll be _lovin'_ us."

{}

The path to Goldenrod filled up pretty quickly once the Sudowoodo copse was gone, but the road to Ecruteak was less used and mainly travelled by single trainers. They were almost exclusively psychics and students going to study in Ecruteak, which Vera had said was famous for its historical and mythological records. It was also the religious centre of Johto; most of the country's myths and legendary Pokémon originated from or were in some way connected with the area.

Most of the psychics going to Ecruteak were training to raise their powers in the hopes of proving their worth to such legendary Pokémon, so many of them challenged Saylee to battle. Anyone expecting an easy battle against a non-psychic was not counting on Wendy and her twinneedle.

"_Word is that the monastery in Ecruteak's calling for new novices,_" Vera told Saylee over the phone. "_Apparently their scriptures have predicted… _something_ coming up soon. I don't know what, they're very secretive about that kind of thing. The monks at Bellsprout Tower think that all of the strange things that Mr Pokémon's talking about, the migrations and epidemics, they're a symptom of something that's been building up since Psychic Ground Zero. Johto recovered from that fine for the most part, but I know I wasn't the only person thinking that was just the opening act of something much bigger."_

"That wasn't caused by gods or magic or anything, though," Saylee said softly. "That was people and the creations of people."

"_That's not widely known, though. There's enough records and archived reports to tell us that there was war in Kanto, but it's still not really known what ended it and caused Psychic Ground Zero. A lot of people assume that divine intervention was involved."_

"It wasn't anything divine. It never is. Just people trying to play god, and Pokémon do it just as well. Where there's trouble, there's a cause, and it's usually somebody getting greedy. Sooner or later, that somebody is Team Rocket." Saylee sighed. "That's one of the things that makes Red so hard to find. All I can hope for is that he hasn't gotten any better at keeping out of trouble then me."

"_Well, he never got to Giovanni like you did, but I remember that he still gave us a ton of trouble. When you're following trouble, I'd say that odds are just as even for finding him as for finding Team Rocket."_

"That's all I want out of life right now," Saylee said. She glanced at her Pokémon, gathered around Nider and bringing him up to speed on what they knew about Team Rocket. Nider seemed all for getting to beat people up with moral justification. "Actually, there's one more thing I need, if you think you can find it…"

{}

"Ouch," Chip said, wincing. "_That_ must've been hurtin', whatever it was."

"What?" Saylee said, looking up from her breakfast. Chip pointed at the man who had limped into the dining hall of the Ecruteak Inn and started piling up toast for himself from the heated breakfast bar. Her eyes widened as she recognized the empty left sleeve and the bandaged eye. "Oh my goodness. Bill!"

"You know the guy?" Nider said, staring. "Damn, he looks like he's been through the shit."

"Don't _stare_ at the poor man," Wendy chastised him. "It's _rude_." Georgia, Mary and Tobias quickly looked back down at their breakfasts.

"Toby, go invite him to sit with us, will you?" Saylee said. "It'll be nice to catch up. I didn't know he'd come out here."

Tobias set his bowl down on the table and flitted away across the large dining hall, flitting around or over the heads of the other diners scattered across the tables with their Pokémon. "Whit happened tae 'im?" Mary asked, watching the Togetic go.

"Science," Saylee said. "Seriously, try not to stare at his injuries, okay? An experiment went very wrong, his Clefairy died and he's bloody lucky that he didn't too. He's also a good friend of mine, so be nice." Everyone looked pointedly at Nider, who had proven himself incapable of resisting any opportunity to take the piss out of people.

"I'm eatin', leave me alone," he grumbled, digging back into his food.

Tobias flew back over, setting Bill's plate down on the table across from Saylee. Bill peered curiously at her as he sat down. Saylee tipped up the brim of her hat and winked.

"I _thought_ it was you!" he said with a lopsided smile. "So, how's the search going?"

"No sign of Red," Saylee said, shaking her head, "but I ran into Team Rocket in Azaela Town. Just a small-time thing, a fundraiser. They're around, though, I'm sure."

A small Eevee trotted in holding a bowl of food in her mouth and settled down on the floor next to Bill. "Who's this, Bill?" she asked, looking around at Saylee and her Pokémon.

"A friend of mine, and your father's," Bill told her. "Everyone, this is Eva. She's Elric and Flo's. Born about a month ago. She's been a big help, and when I said I was coming back to Johto she wanted to come with."

"Oh, wow!" Saylee reached down to ruffle Eva's fur. The little Eevee preened in a way that was ridiculously reminiscent of Flo. "I can see the resemblance. Hi, sweetie!"

"Anyway, if you're not having any leads to finding Red," Bill said, carefully buttering his toast one-handedly, "you should ask Morty."

"Who's Morty?" Saylee asked, returning to her cereal.

"He's the most powerful psychic around. He's the master of a dojo here. He used to be a monk at Bell Tower, but he left about ten years ago. It hasn't diminished his powers in the slightest. He can even see into the future."

"Weren't those weird ladies livin' here too?"Chip asked. "Weren't Ethan's grandparents sayin' they be livin' here?"

"The Geisha?" Saylee said. "Oh, yeah… do you know anything about them, Bill?"

"Geisha?" Bill said in surprise between bites of toast. "Of course. My mother was one."

"Wait, _really_?" Saylee stared suspiciously at him.

"A long time ago. She had to leave to marry my father, and never really completed her training," Bill said, taken aback by her reaction. "Where did you meet them? They don't normally leave Ecruteak much. Usually, people come to them."

"Well then, there's been an epidemic of itchy feet, because I've run into them twice now in weird places," Saylee grumbled. "I've variously heard that they're a cult, a religious order…"

"Entertainers, primarily," Bill said, shaking his head. "Mother said that there were secrets to be learned once you became a full-fledged Geisha, but of course she never learned them…" He stood up, picking up his emptied plate. "Why don't you come with me to their main house? It's just a couple of streets away, and I believe it's one of their show days. You can see for yourself."

"I like the sound of that," Saylee said, getting up and looking at her Pokémon. "Alright, guys. The law here's the same as everywhere else; one fighter at a time. Chip, why don't you walk with me?"

"Sure," Chip said. Everyone else just shrugged or nodded as they were returned. Tobias looked a little sullen, but he always did when faced with the pokéball.

"This way, then," Bill said, leading her out of the inn and bowing his head politely to the innkeeper on the way out.

"Your limp's looking a lot better," Saylee noted, also bowing to the innkeeper briefly. "You don't need a cane to walk anymore."

"No, I've gotten very comfortable with the new foot prosthetic Carrie made for me," Bill said, walking along the streets of Ecruteak. It was a very pretty city, all traditional buildings with sloped tiled roofs in muted colours that perfectly matched the dull oranges and browns of the trees. Dry leaves littered the paths and crunched under their feet. "My sister thinks that the Pokémon cloning technology should be adapted for humans so I can have a new arm grown. Adapting the technology is an interesting thought, but the problem is how dead and mangled the nerves in my shoulder are. Even if a new arm was grown, it could never be attached…"

"Too bad," Saylee said uncomfortably. Bill seemed fairly blasé about his injuries, but she still couldn't forget his nightmarishly deformed appearance, all the _blood…_

Then again, it could have been worse. For his Clefairy, it had been.

"Hey, Lee?" Chip asked. "I like bein' out an' all, but should you not be havin' Nider around? He's new, after all, you ought t'be getting' to know 'im…"

"I know, but…" Saylee frowned. "It's probably prejudiced, but I don't think I'd feel… _safe_, having him out on his own. I'd want you or Georgia out as well."

"Why?" Chip asked, frowning. "I mean, I know how he's bein' kind of a jerk, but 'e wouldn't be _hurtin'_ you…"

"I know that," Saylee insisted. Bill and Eva were both looking confused. "It's just… Blue's parents were killed by a starving herd of wild Nidorino, okay? I didn't _see_ it, but I remember Mum grabbing Red and I and _running_ from them…"

"Oh, my goodness," Bill murmured, reaching around a little awkwardly to pat her on the shoulder. "I didn't realize… I wondered why Blue and Daisy's parents weren't around, but I could never figure out how to ask…"

"It's a little bit of a touchy subject," Saylee warned him. "We were just little at the time, but Blue saw… the beginning of it…" she shook her head. "Don't tell him I told you. He was actually kind of scared of Pokémon for years, until he started training with Sam. And he only did that because—"

She was cut off by a cry of rage, followed by a scream of pain.

"What on earth is that?" Bill said, limping quickly towards a large, elegantly decorated building. "It's coming from the main house!"

"Of course they live _here_," Saylee muttered, pushing open a gilded door. "Bill, you're disabled and Eva's a baby. Both of you should stay out here. I'll deal with it."

"You will, won't you," Bill said, reaching down to pick up Eva. "We'll go find the police. There are some in this town somewhere, I'm sure…" Once he'd limped off, Saylee ran inside, Chip at her heels.

"C'mon, I'm a paying customer! Gimme a hula dance or something!"

"Please do not force such a request on me…"

Saylee could swear that the woman on the stage was the same woman who had been following her; same pattern of dress, same heavy makeup and hairstyle. A man in an infuriatingly familiar black uniform was shaking her by the wrist and leering at her, while his Koffing belched poisonous gas at anyone else who tried to get up on the stage. An elderly man was already unconscious on the ground. A group of people were tending to him, throwing dirty looks at the Rocket but clearly too scared to actually attack him.

"Nider," Saylee muttered, releasing him and keeping her gaze on the Rocket in case he noticed. He didn't, too distracted by trying to pull the Geisha into dancing with him. "You don't get poisoned, do you?"

"'Course not," Nider said indignantly. "What do I look like, a Rattata?"

"Then go kick the guy in black." Saylee started edging around the wall towards the stage. The Geisha's face wrinkled in disgust as the Rocket succeeded in pulling her close. "Not too hard, just enough to make him let go of her. Once that Koffing's distracted, Chip, Flame Wheel might be a good idea."

"Sure," Chip said, flaring up.

"Hey, ugly!" Nider shouted, running onto the stage. The Rocket glared at him. "Ha! You looked!"

The Geisha stamped hard on the Rocket's foot with one of her heavy wooden sandals. He pushed her back with a shout of rage, which became a yell of pain as Nider kicked him hard on the backs of his knees. He crumpled onto the stage.

"You little— what are you just staring at, get him!" He yelled angrily, pointing at Nider. His Koffing turned to face Nider. As soon as it did, it was struck on the back by a rolling wheel of fire.

"Dammit!" The Rocket yelled, staggering to his feet. "I can't be wasting time here in this shitty dive anyway! Later, losers!"

"Oh no you _don't_—" Nider growled, leaping at the man, but the Rocket dropped a smokebomb. When everyone could see again, a sliding window was open and the man was gone. "Well, dammit."

"Sorry, Lee," Chip said, climbing onto the stage and rolling the singed Koffing face-up. "He got away."

"That's okay," Saylee said, walking towards the stage herself. "Are you alright, ma'am?"

"Thank you for driving away that foul man," the Geisha said, smoothing her dress. "He did not even care to rescue his own Pokémon." She looked sadly down at the charred Koffing lying on the stage.

"He… left me… behind?" The Koffing coughed piteously. She sounded female.

"What's your name?" Saylee asked gently, kneeling next to her.

"Ki… Kiara…" Kiara sucked in a deep breath, sucking traces of her own gases out of the air to rejuvenate herself.

"Well, Kiara, I'm Lyra," Saylee said, pulling a pokéball out of her pocket. "And I'm going to send you to someone who'll look after you." She tapped the pokéball on Kiaara's head and the weakened Pokémon was captured immediately. Saylee flipped open her Pokédex and put Kiara's pokéball onto the portpad.

"…strong, and kind too…"

"…_really_ knows what to look for…"

Saylee spun around. The Geisha was standing by the sliding door at the back of the stage, watching Saylee with a smile. Saylee could swear that she'd heard her whispering to someone, but nobody seemed to be there.

"By the way, what were you doing there?" Saylee asked suspiciously. "In Violet City and Ilex Forest?"

The Geisha frowned in confusion. "I do not understand. I have been here in Ecruteak all month…"

"Thank you so much for driving that thug away!" the theatre crowd surrounded Saylee, Chip and Nider, thanking and congratulating them. Saylee craned over their heads to see that there was no sign of the geisha anywhere in the dance hall. She wasn't on the polished wooden stage, and with the patrons of the dance hall now crowding the stage the audience floor was just a mess of painted silk cushions on tatami flooring. The walls were hung with red sashes matching the missing geisha's obi.

"Hey, where'd she go?" Saylee asked, looking around.

"Oh, she'll have gone back into the house," a woman sighed. "It must have been quite an ordeal for the poor girl, having her performance disrupted like that…"

"Poor girl nothin'," Nider muttered. "I think she kicked him harder than I did." Saylee nodded slightly.

"I'd like to go back and see her, if that's alright…" she said, starting towards the door. Everyone immediately moved to stand in her way.

"I'm very sorry, but you just _can't_ go back there," one man insisted. "You can't possibly trespass in their house, in the okiya! It's a secret place, a sanctuary!"

"You could be cursed," a woman agreed. "Don't do it, we beg of you."

"…Fine," Saylee sighed as police officers ran into the building. "You took your time!"

{}

The police continued to take their time getting full statements from Saylee and the rest of the witnesses before letting them go. Saylee hadn't managed to gain access to the okiya—even the officers were reluctant to tread there and seemed to agree that waiting for one of the women to surface was the best course—but she had managed to learn that Morty had been seen going into the Burned Tower.

"Is that it?" Chip said, pointing to the charred husk of a building that still succeeded in towering over most of the rest of the town, taller than every building save one still very complete and extremely tall tower. It looked like both towers had once been the same, level after level of dark wood fringed with sloping roofs, but one was now reduced to one and a half blackened floors.

"What tipped you off?" Nider asked sarcastically.

"Even if we haven't found out what those Geisha are up to, we can still try talking to this psychic," Saylee said, starting up the steps to the tower.

"How're you knowin' those ladies're bein' up to anything?" Chip said timidly. "I mean, there are holy places in Violet and Ilex, maybe they were bein' there for… I dunno, prayer, somethin'…"

"Been in Ecruteak all month," Saylee muttered. "I said I'd seen her in Violet City and Ilex Forest, but I never said _when… _so how did she know when she wasn't there?"

{}

{}

_I'm so sorry about the long update gap! We have been experiencing technical difficulties, but it's all good now, hopefully :D I'll update again on Thursday for certain, never fear :D_

_Kiara's from the Burned Tower, not the dance hall, for obvious reasons._

_Name: Kiara. Species: Koffing. Nature: Adamant. Ability: Levitate. Level: 14_


	13. Chapter 12

_Pokémon: 14 Deaths: 0_

"This place does not look safe at _all_," Saylee muttered with a frown, picking her way up the fire-damaged, crumbling wooden steps into the Burned Tower. More than one groaned under her feet. "What's Morty doing here?"

Shapes of light spotted the floor from holes in the caved-in ceiling. Blackened wooden beams lay in piles all over the floor, too big to burn into ash like most of the tower. Huge drifts of black ash were all over the place, coating everything and floating into the air whenever Saylee moved, some of it turned to thick patches of black sludge by rainwater over innumerable years. Most of the middle of the floor was gone entirely, causing Saylee, Chip and Nider to walk _carefully_ along the remaining floor around the walls.

"What was this place, anyway?" Chip asked, looking around.

"I'm gonna guess a tower," Nider said, poking curiously at a few fallen beams with his horn. A small pile of stone fragments collapsed, hitting Saylee in the knee. She tripped, but a white-gloved hand caught her.

"Do be careful, miss," a man said smoothly. "This place is treacherous."

"Thank you," Saylee said, straightening up. The man looked a little under thirty and was very formally dressed, with slicked-back brown hair, a purple suit and a white cape. "Are you Morty?" she asked, wondering if _weird _was how most psychics looked. Aside from the fact that he was wearing a snow-white cape—_Who wears a _cape? _Aside from Lance, and he's crazy_—his gloves were still pristine white, despite Saylee's hand being nearly black from the ash and dust inside of the tower. It was kind of creepy.

"Oh, no!" The man laughed, bowing elegantly and then straightening up with a dramatic swish of his cape. "I am the fabulous Eusine, seeker of the beautiful Suicune! You see, I suspect that it may recently have returned here, where it was born, but…" he sighed heavily. "Alas, every time I approach it, away it flees. It is too fast to be caught! Oh, what to do…"

"I have no idea," Saylee said, completely honestly. Chip and Nider were both staring at Eusine in confused fascination.

"Never mind Eusine, he's a bit obsessed," said another man as he appeared out of the gloom. He was tall, blond and also well-dressed in white pants and a purple jumper. His headband and scarf bore matching purple-and-red patterns.

"Are _you_ Morty?" Nider asked. "Or is there a whole freak convention in town?"

"Nider…" Saylee frowned at him. "Don't be rude."

"I am Morty," Morty said, graciously ignoring Nider. "Are you here with the little red-haired boy?"

"I… wait, Silver's here?" Saylee said in surprise. "On his _own_? This place is dangerous!" She looked around the gloomy tower, trying to spot a flash of red.

"He went that way," Morty said, pointing. "I was just about to go follow him, but I wanted to come back and get Eusine to come with me… it's not safe at all. You shouldn't have let your little brother run off alone like that."

"My… yeah, I shouldn't," Saylee agreed, unable to come up with a quick alternative explanation for how she knew Silver and why she was worried about him. "Listen, there's something I'd like to ask you about later—something I'd like you to find…"

"You're welcome to come by my dojo," Morty said with a smile. "It's just to the south of the okiya."

"Thanks," Saylee said, hurrying off.

"They was _weird_," Chip whispered, glancing at the two men who were now talking to one another in hushed tones. Saylee nodded.

"Didn't know you had a little brother," Nider said curiously.

"I don't," Saylee said. "Silver's just this weird, troubled kid I keep running into… I don't know why Morty assumed he was related to me. I'll have to ask him later."

"You were sayin' he's a psychic, right?" Chip said. "He might've been hearin' you thinkin' about findin' your brother or somethin', an' when you were sayin' you knew Silver he thought you were meanin'…"

"Fair enough, but still, it's not like we even look alike… Silver! There you are!"

She'd spotted the boy in question crouching on the edge of the gap in the floor, peering down with an unusually childish expression of wide-eyed curiosity. It changed to a dark scowl when he looked up at Saylee. A Magnemite was floating over his shoulder, and imitated its trainer's glare.

"Oh, it's _you_," he said sourly. "What're _you_ doing here, liar?" He stood up and crossed his arms. His Magnemite crackled threateningly.

"Looking for you," Saylee said, holding out her hand. "Come away from there, Silver. It's not safe."

"Don't you tell me what to do!" Silver shouted angrily. "I don't need you or _anyone_! I'm just _fine_ on my own! I'm plenty strong, and I'll _prove_ it! Go!" He released his Gastly, who floated in the air in front of Saylee.

"Silver, calm down," Saylee said, motioning for Chip and Nider to step back. "We don't need to fight—"

"Yes we do!" Silver insisted. "I'll prove it here, and I bet the Legendary Beasts'll see! They'll know that I'm strong, and that you're _weak_ like Team Rocket!"

"Will you fight or not?" The Gastly said, a nasty grin spreading as he looked from Chip to Nider.

"Toby will," Saylee said, calling out her Togetic. He floated safely above the ground, frowning when he spotted Silver and his Gastly.

"This again?" Tobias lamented.

"I'm afraid so," Saylee sighed. "Extrasensory."

"Curse!" Silver ordered. The Gastly's eyes began to glow a fraction of a second before Tobias' did. The Gastly gave a shuddering cry and drooped, sinking towards the floor. At the same time, however, Tobias also gave a wail and fell out of the air.

"Toby!" Saylee cried, diving to catch him. The wood under her feet creaked in protest at the sudden movement, but she didn't notice. Tobias was shivering and whimpering.

"Gastly's curse just keeps going," Silver said smugly, returning his Gastly.

"Silver, ghost curses are not something you can just play around with like that!" Saylee shouted, returning Tobias and relieved that his pokéball would take him back at all. "They're _dangerous_! That ghost is too dangerous for a kid like—"

"I'm not just some kid!" Silver shouted back. "I'm strong! I can handle it! You, get her! Supersonic!" His Magnemite immediately began sparking and floating towards Saylee, wailing horribly.

"Chip!" Saylee called, pressing her hands to her ears and wincing. Chip leapt in front of her, his back and head flaring up. "Flame Wheel!"

"Okay!" Chip said, flaring up even more and then flicking his whole body forwards, sending a wheel of fire rolling through the air towards the noisy foe. The Magnemite gave a metallic screech and fell heavily to the ground with a _crack_. A small chunk of floorboard fell away, but the floor mostly held.

"Silver, this is dangerous in here," Saylee said, eyeing the floor nervously. "We need to go outside—"

"Running away, huh?" Silver sneered, returning his Magnemite to a pokéball and letting out his noticeably larger Zubat. "Bite 'em!"

"Thundershock!" Saylee ordered as she released Mary. Chip nervously bolted back onto more solid floor as Mary appeared and zapped the Zubat.

"This wean again?" she said as Silver returned his Zubat, seething. "Whit's 'is problem?"

"_Your_ problem is that you've gotta fight my very strongest Pokémon now!" Silver raged. "Tyra! Ice Fang!"

"Thundershock again!" Saylee ordered. Mary zapped Tyra, but the tough Croconaw managed to handle it long enough to sink her jaws into Mary's shoulder. The pair of them went crashing to the ground with Mary's wool beginning to ice over. The ground shook.

There was a _crack_ and the ground under Tyra's feet fell away. Silver's expression went from rage to shock as he found himself falling into space.

"Silver!"

{}

"Ow, ow, _ow_," Tyra yelped. "Stop _zapping_ me already!"

"S'no ma fault you're so damp," Mary said, struggling to hold onto Tyra's slippery hand. "Stop yankin' at ma wool! Chip, huv ye got a grip?"

"Aye, yeah," Chip mumbled. He was holding onto Mary's legs and struggling to pull her up enough to get some purchase so they could pull Tyra up together. "C'mon… c'mon… _there!_"

Mary felt her back feet hit wood and began to haul herself up. Chip leaned past her to grab Tyra's other hand and pull her up. The moment the three of them were on floor they quickly skittered away from the edge. Tyra looked around in a panic.

"Silver!" she called. "_Silver_!"

"They both went over the edge," Nider said, peering into the gloom below. "Lee went after him. We've gotta find another way down…"

"This wouldnae huv happened if your bloody stupit trainer hadnae picked a fight in a bloody stupit place," Mary snapped as they edged around the hole in the floor.

"Shut it," Tyra snarled. "He's just a kid, but he's a really good trainer."

"But he's so _mean_, Tyra," Chip complained. "He doesn't even have the knowin' o' anyone's name but yours. Why d'you be stayin' with 'im?"

"He's just mean because he hates your stupid lying trainer!" Tyra snapped. "He's really just… kinda sad and angry. But no matter how mad he gets or if he calls us weak, he doesn't abandon us. He won't."

"Why _is_ he bein' so mad at Lee?" Chip asked tentatively.

"I… don't really know," Tyra admitted, sagging. "Silver doesn't have any family anymore, and it's all _her_ fault. He just won't say why. Won't say much about it at all. Keeps a lot of secrets, you know?"

"Aye, so does Lee," Mary said with a shrug. "Lots ae humans dae that. No' a very honest lot, really, are they?"

"They be pretty weird," Chip agreed. "But still… I'm happy I'm bein' with Lee. Tyra? I just got t'be knowin'… are you happy with Silver?"

"If I left him, I think I'd be very _un_happy with myself," Tyra said, looking down into the gloom. "I hope he's alright."

{}

Saylee's whole body felt like one big bruise. At least the fall hadn't been too far, and she'd had the sense to roll when she hit the ground. She'd managed to catch Silver too. The kid was tucked safely under her arms. She could feel him trembling in fright.

Under the baggy clothes, he was so _skinny_. Was he getting enough to eat? For that matter, the oversized black jumper and purple trousers were the same ones he always wore. Saylee could feel the grime on them even under the dust coating her hands.

"Are you okay?" Saylee asked, wincing as she sat up. Silver nodded, then remembered himself and knocked her arms away.

"I'm fine! Let me go!" he snarled, pushing himself to his feet and stepping back. "I don't need you!"

"You're welcome," Saylee muttered, brushing herself off to get rid of some of the grime. Nothing felt broken, just bruised, and Silver was clenching his fists and stamping his foot, so he seemed mostly alright.

"I mean it! I hate you!" Silver shouted angrily. "You make me look weak!"

_Well, if he can shout like that, he doesn't have any damaged ribs…_ "Actually, you're a really strong trainer for a kid your age," Saylee said, pulling her glasses off and wiping off the ash. The gloom got a bit less murky when she put them back on. "I mean, how old are you? Nine?"

"Very nearly ten, _actually_," Silver corrected her pointedly. Saylee laughed.

"Sorry, sorry…" she giggled at Silver's livid look. "But you really are good. Tyra's grown really fast, and so has your Zubat and Gastly… honestly, I've never seen a ghost that controlled, that much with a sense of self. That he lets you control him… you know, with your talent you could apprentice yourself to any of the dojos in this country and you could rise to master in no time. Why don't you? What are you looking for?"

"I'm gonna find my dad!" Silver shouted. "He left because of _you_, and then Mum did too! I'm gonna find him and show him that I'm strong and I don't need him or her or you or ANYBODY!"

His shouts echoed around the room. Something stirred in the dark. All the rage left Silver's face as he stared at _something_ over Saylee's shoulder.

Saylee turned around and saw something glowing in the dark—no, _three_ somethings glowing red, blue and yellow. The three glows grew in size and brightness and began to mingle, causing auroras in every colour of the rainbow to dance around the room.

Three dark shapes were silhouetted within the lights. Six glowing pinprick eyes stared back at the two humans.

Saylee glanced back at Silver. He was staring at the lights, transfixed, his awe making him look far younger than his rage. He reached a hand out to the lights.

"Suicune! At last!"

Saylee looked up to see Eusine floating down with a Jumpluff, absolute joy on his face. At his shout, however, the three lights shot up into the air, blasting up through the damaged remnants of the roof and flying away.

"No!" Silver cried out as darkness fell. "You _idiot_! You scared them away!"

"Are you two alright?" Morty asked, floating down to them. He was wrapped in a purple light which separated from him when he touched the ground and became, to Saylee's shock, a Haunter. "Your Pokémon are very worried about you. I promised that I'd come find you."

"Thank you," Saylee said, accepting the hand he offered to pull her to her feet. "We're fine. What _was_ that?"

"The glorious Suicune, and the slightly less glorious Entei and Raikou!" Eusine sang happily. "They escaped me, but just to see them is a blessing and a joy!" He yelped when Silver shoved him.

"Why did you have to come down here?" Silver shouted angrily. "You _ruined_ it! They—PUT ME DOWN!"

"Come, we must ascend!" Eusine laughed, holding the struggling Silver under one arm and gripping his Jumpluff's ankle again with the other. "Up and away, Herrena!"

"Shall we?" Morty said, offering Saylee his hand again as Eusine and Silver drifted upwards. Saylee looked nervously at his Haunter.

"He shouldn't still be here, should he?" she asked warily. "I mean… the only ghosts I've ever seen before have been so _angry_."

"Most of them are," Morty said with a nod. "There are many means to calm them. Burying their remains in sanctified ground is favourite, but…"

"I have none," his Haunter said calmly. "I do not yet feel… _tired_ enough to rest. To fight with Morty helps me rest. I promise that I shall do you no ill."

"Okay then," Saylee said, taking Morty's hand, unable to help a squeak of surprise as the Haunter flew _into_ them, making them weightless. It didn't hurt her, though, just made her feel cold as she was floated up to where her Pokémon were waiting.

Cold, and just a little bit sad.

{}

{}

_I've had a lot of comments on earlier chapters featuring Silver talking about what a jerk he is and how mean he is… well, there's a reason a person gets like that, especially a little kid. Here's the first little peek at what those reasons might be. (Anyone who did the Celebi event in HGSS can probably guess where this subplot is going, but there's more to it here.)_


	14. Chapter 13

_Pokémon: 14 Deaths: 0_

"Your Tobias will be fine," Morty said with a smile, handing the pokéball across the table to Saylee."The curse has already dispelled, likely when he disincorporated to go into his pokéball."

"Thank goodness," Saylee sighed, hugging Tobias' pokéball. Mary and Chip exchanged relieved looks.

"I am only sorry that I let your little brother slip away," Eusine said apologetically.

"It's okay," Saylee said, tapping her pokégear. "Mum found him." While it was true that she'd made some calls to both Vera and Bill, asking them to keep a watch out for news of a boy with red hair, he seemed to have vanished into the ether again. The kid was better at flying under the radar than most of Team Rocket. Saylee was somewhat nervous of lying around Morty, but he seemed to be a different kind of psychic to Sabrina. He hadn't called her out on giving a false name or for going along with the story that Silver was her brother. Either he couldn't hear thoughts, or he just didn't care.

"You are very lucky to have a Togetic," Morty said. "They're awfully rare. Many people don't even think they exist."

"Not as rare as what I saw in that ruin, I'll bet," Saylee said, looking up at the paintings that adorned the walls of the dimly-lit dojo where Eusine, Morty and Morty's disciples lived. The paintings were old, the colours faded, but nevertheless they seemed to glow with vibrant energy. Three in particular had caught her eye. One depicted a blue four-legged creature running across ocean waves. The second showed a similar red creature running down an exploding volcano. The third portrayed a yellow creature being chased by lightning. Saylee couldn't decide if they looked more feline or canine, but whatever they were they did look familiar.

"Yes, I believe that they are what we saw today," Morty agreed when he caught her staring. "Suicune, Entei and Raikou. The Legendary Beasts, servants of Ho-oh. Eusine first came here ten years ago when he saw Suicune running this way." He grinned at Eusine.

"It was very beautiful!" Eusine enthused. "Stunning, the way Suicune soared across land and sea! I was entranced! It was truly a sight to behold! For many years I have sought out Suicune, longing to prove myself to it…"

"That wean said you scared it aff," Mary pointed out. Eusine's face fell.

"They say that children can see what others cannot," Morty chuckled, patting Eusine's hand consolingly. "Cheer up. They will no doubt be more active now that the time of Ho-oh's descent approaches…"

"Now what now?" Saylee asked. Morty gestured to the engravings above and below the paintings. The upper, engraved in gold, showed some kind of huge bird against the sun, while the bottom depicted a strange dragonlike creature, carved in silver and silhouetted against the full moon. In the flickering light of the candles, the pair seemed to fly.

"The golden one is Ho-oh, god of death and rebirth," Morty explained. "Long ago, it lived atop the Bell Tower that still stands. Thirty-five hundred years ago, when Lugia flew into a rage and destroyed the city in a storm, three unknown Pokémon perished in the Brass Tower when it burned. Ho-oh restored and remade them as Suicune, Entei and Raikou, and now they serve Ho-oh. One day soon, Ho-oh will return and choose a worthy human…"

"Morty has trained his entirely life to be that worthy human," Eusine said excitedly, waving elaborately at Morty. "He has cared for the restless dead and trained his psychic abilities… as you saw in the Burned Tower, he is very good at finding what is lost, and can see something of the future too!"

"Mere psychic ability is not enough to be worthy of Ho-oh," Morty said, smiling. "I must also be warrior and trainer enough to be worthy. You are a trainer yourself, Lyra; would you like to have a battle tomorrow? It's awfully late now."

"A battle?" Saylee said, looking around a touch nervously. "You use ghosts, don't you?"

"Only they who wish to be used," Morty promised her. "And I promise you, we are as strong in the sunlight as we are in the dark. We have no need to hide in shadows."

"You're on, then," Saylee said, standing up and stepping back from the low traditional table. Chip and Nider got up to follow her. "Well, guys, we'd better go find somewhere to stay. We've got a battle tomorrow…"

"But of course you are welcome to stay here!" Eusine insisted. "You are now a challenger of Morty's. Of course we must offer you our hospitality!"

"Our home is yours, Lyra," Morty said, nodding. "There are a number of disciples' rooms down the corridor to your left. Nobody is in the end three. You are welcome to take your pick."

"Thank you," Saylee said, bowing to the men. "I'll see you in the morning, then." She could faintly hear Morty and Eusine talking to one another in hushed tones again as she walked down the corridor, counting doors.

"Think wraiths are gaunnae jump oot on us in oor kip?" Mary said, leaping at Chip. "BOO!"

"Leave me alone," Chip muttered, jumping away from her. Mary just grinned, lighting her tail and leading them down the corridor. Saylee looked around, counting doors.

"That one," Saylee said, picking the one second from the end. It was a neat, bare little room with a sleeping pallet against one wall, a sink and a water closet in the corner. There were a few hooks by the door on which Saylee hung her coat, hat and bag. She then released Nider, Georgia, Wendy and Tobias.

"Ooh, where are we now?" Tobias said, looking around curiously. "What happened to Silver?"

"Oh, did you meet that child again?" Wendy asked. "Whatever happened?"

"He ran off again," Saylee said, digging her hairbrush out of her bag and pulling her hair out of her pigtails. "We're staying at… well, they call it a dojo, but it's sort of a temple too. Full of people training to soothe ghosts."

"Really?" Tobias said excitedly. "Oooh, I can feel them! There's _tons_ of ghosts here!" He frowned. "Wait. That's a bad thing…"

"From the look ae Morty's 'aunter, they want tae be 'ere," Mary told him, stretching out and then selecting a spot to lie down and begin grooming her wool.

"Mama told me about fighting spirits once," Tobias said, settling down next to her and imitating her grooming motions. He was always game for getting to play with the Flaaffy's soft wool. "Some warriors die and still aren't _done_ fighting. They need to fight a while until they decide they're done. Not very common in Kanto, she said. Most dead in Kanto have fought all their lives…"

"Things are different here," Saylee said, frowning as her hair started sticking to her hairbrush. She put it away and dug out her dreamcatcher. "We're going to battle Morty in the morning. Toby, you're the most used to handling ghosts. You've been to Lavender with your parents. I'm going to be mainly relying on you."

"_Really_?" Tobias said excitedly, flying up to hug Saylee. "Yay! Thank you!"

"No problem," Saylee said, hugging him back. "It's pretty late, so I'm going to take a shower and then let's all get some sleep, okay?"

"Sounds loike a plan t'me, moy love," Georgia said, floating gently to the ground. She smiled when Wendy floated down to sleep on the ground next to her, spreading one wing over her rocky friend like a cover.

"How come you don't just put us in our pokéballs for the night, anyways?" Nider wanted to know. "Most humans do that…"

"I like having you all here," Saylee said, pulling her towels out of her bag. She started to remove her shoes and smiled at the sight of Tobias snuggling down into Mary's wool.

"We like bein' here," Chip said, curling up next to Tobias and Mary. Nider yawned hugely and lay down nearby.

Once Saylee was showered and changed into her nightshirt, she went to turn off the light. The room remained very dimly lit, however, by a vague pink glow from her dreamcatcher. It was enough to let her see her way back to her bedroll without tripping over one of her Pokémon, but somehow it wasn't intrusive at all when she closed her eyes.

"Goodnight," she whispered, reaching up to touch it before snuggling under her blanket and falling straight to sleep.

{}

"Four Pokémon each, switch-in?" Morty suggested. Saylee nodded.

"I'll only need one," she promised.

"This shall be a sight to see!" Eusine said excitedly. He gave Morty a kiss on the cheek and ran to sit with his boyfriend's disciples, who were sitting in rows to watch the battle. The main hall of the dojo was in a similar style to the geisha's dance hall, a large expanse of polished wooden flooring set above a tatami seating area and separated from the rest of the building by a set of plain sliding paper doors. Saylee wondered if the buildings had been built around the same time. "The winner shall advance in the prestige of the almighty Ho-oh!"

"That's nice," Saylee said, releasing Tobias. Morty looked around at the darkness that enshrouded the hall.

"Geary," he called, "do you feel up to a battle?"

"Sure!" A Gastly materialized with a wicked grin in front of Morty. His eyes immediately began to glow, the pupils rolling wildly.

"Extrasensory!" Saylee ordered. Tobias' eyes glowed right back and Geary shuddered, fading away. "Are you giving them commands telepathically?"

"Some of them are indeed talented at reading my intent," Morty said mildly. A Haunter appeared next to him. "Such as Gelasius here." Gelasius giggled and then gave an unearthly shriek.

_He doesn't even have to call them… _"Extrasensory again!" Saylee ordered. Tobias' eyes glowed once more and Gelasius faded out just as Geary had, but again Tobias cried out and collapsed as a curse took hold.

"It will fade the moment he is returned to his pokéball," Morty promised. Saylee did so, startled by Tobias being cursed again but not as afraid as she had been in Burned Tower. Morty was older and more powerful than Silver, far more likely to know what he was doing, and if he was anything like the Lavender priestesses, he had too much respect for death to purposefully kill.

"Magnitude!" Saylee commanded, releasing Georgia.

"Gilgamesh," Morty called, rather more sternly than when he'd summoned Geary. A Gengar appeared, cackling at the shaking floor.

"Ah, oh, ow, you _got_ me…" he gasped theatrically, spinning in the air a foot above the floor. "Seriously? That's your plan?"

"Shut up an' foight, you tosser," Georgia grumbled, beginning to throw rocks at Saylee's command. By and large, however, the stones passed harmlessly through the trickster spirit while the black sphere that Gilgamesh produced in his hands hit Georgia hard enough to slam her into the far wall.

"Georgia!" Saylee cried, running to her Pokémon's side.

"Still… breathin'…" Georgia gasped. "Don't you… worry now…"

"You're going to be okay," Saylee promised, returning Georgia and glancing back at Gilgamesh. He and Morty were glaring at each other. Gengar were evidently a little more uncontrolled than regular spirits, so Morty must have considered Tobias a serious threat. Knowing that, and knowing that Curses dispelled when Pokémon were returned to their pokéballs, Saylee released the Togetic again. "If you're feeling better, Toby, you know what to do!"

"Sure do!" Tobias said, glowing with psychic power. Gilgamesh shuddered but didn't fade.

"That all you got, little fairy?" he leered, producing another black sphere and flinging it at Tobias. It passed right through Tobias with no effect.

"You're one to talk," Tobias said with a frown, hitting Gilgamesh with extrasensory again. This time, the Gengar vanished.

"It is four on four, and I still have Gavril left," Morty said as another Haunter appeared. It tried to hypnotize Tobias as Geary had, but Tobias knocked it straight out with extrasensory.

"No you don't," Saylee said, stepping forwards and hugging Tobias. "Well done!"

"I hope they all find rest soon," Tobias said solemnly. Morty smiled and bowed to him.

"That was _fantastic_!" Eusine enthused. "Splendid! Morty, she beat you with ease! Even I have never managed that!"

"That was something indeed," Morty said, walking up to shake Saylee's hand. "You are most worthy yourself… here." He reached into his pocket and withdrew a pin, which he pressed into Saylee's hand. "My emblem, the symbol of Fog. Show it to the brothers at Bell Tower and they'll let you visit the base of the Tower and their library. It's quite fascinating if you are inclined towards myth and legend."

"Thank you," Saylee said, pinning the badge onto her bag. "Can I ask something else of you?"

"But of course," Morty said with a nod. "You have earned it."

"I need you to help me find someone." Saylee reached into the small pocket of her bag that held precious things like her dreamcatcher and Red's last letter. An old photograph was folded up in there. "The boy in this picture is my elder brother, Red," she explained. "He's been missing for three years. Please, can you help me find him?"

Morty looked at the photo for a long time, absorbing Red's face. "If anyone in the world can find your brother, it is Morty," Eusine declared. The disciples all nodded, leaning forwards eagerly to watch Morty use his power.

"A psychic in Kanto saw him dying in the west," Saylee said, her voice trembling a little as she remembered Sabrina's words. "Is he here? Is he in Johto?"

"I will see," Morty said, closing his eyes. He stood very still for a long time, a frown slowly forming. Saylee closed her own eyes and thought hard about Red, remembering how Sabrina had required it for her own powers to work.

Blue had been there too, thinking of Red. Saylee wished briefly that her best friend was there with her. She was terrified that she was about to hear that Red had died, and Blue's presence would be a comfort.

"He's east of here," Morty said, slowly extending an arm and pointing through the wall.

"Is he alive?" Saylee asked quickly, looking east even though there was nothing to see but the wall. Morty's frown deepened.

"Were he no longer in this world, I would not be able to find him," he said, opening his eyes. "I had a premonition as well. You will find him in the snow."

"Snow…" Saylee frowned. She had read about snow before, but she'd never seen it. It didn't really get cold enough to snow in Kanto. The weather there didn't change much beyond the frequency of the rain. "Does it snow a lot in Johto?"

"Quite a bit, some winters," Eusine said with a nod. "Perhaps Morty's vision means that you'll find your elder brother when winter comes."

"Thank you very much," Saylee said, bowing to them both. "Thank you for everything. I'd better go and get Georgia healed."

"May all here rest peacefully," Tobias said, imitating the bow and following his trainer away.

"You're welcome here any time you need sanctuary, Lyra," Morty called after her. "This is a safe place for you."

"Good to know," Saylee said, stepping out into the chilly morning air.

{}

"Gorgeous, in't it?" Mary said, kicking up a drift of golden leaves. Saylee could only nod in agreement. The trees surrounding the Bell Tower were like nothing she'd ever seen. She'd thought the autumn colours of the rest of Johto were amazing, but against the trees at the base of the Bell Tower they were as drab as Kanto foliage.

It was like somebody had set the trees on fire, surrounding them with brilliant, flickering reds and gold. Saylee almost felt like she could burn herself walking through the drifts of fallen leaves. Wendy and Nider alone were not particularly entranced.

"It all looks rather dead," Wendy said critically. "I do so hate winter. It's awfully cold and there's not a thing to eat."

"Ain't that what we got 'er for?" Georgia said, nodding at Saylee.

Saylee rolled her eyes and then looked down at Nider, who was curled up and napping. "Don't you think it's beautiful?" she prompted.

"'S just _leaves_," he grumbled. "Wake me when we're somewhere interestin', somewheres that there's no monks goin' on 'bout 'no fightin' in the temple'…"

"Lighten up," Chip said, spitting a cinder at Nider.

"Better not to do that, Chip," Saylee said gently. "These dead leaves look pretty dry." Her pokégear buzzed at her. "Hello?"

"_Saylee, my dear, I have news_!"

"Hello, Mr Pokémon," Saylee said, leaning back against a wizened old tree trunk. "News? Did Vera tell you about Silver?"

"_Who? Never heard of a Pokémon like that, I'm afraid…_"

"Never mind. What's the news?"

"_Well, that Sudowoodo stampede was quite something, they ended up going past Violet City. Frederick got to talking with one of them, and they said they were moving away from the sickness in Olivine. It's become quite an epidemic, they say. Must be hitting the farms north of Olivine too because the prices are shooting right up on milk and a few other things."_

"That's awful," Saylee said with a frown. "What do you think's causing it?"

"_I'm sure I don't know. I'd suggest a Muk making its way into the streams, but water so polluted would be noticed straight away, don't you think? It's unusual, in any case. I can't imagine what else could naturally cause such an epidemic, but it's taking down people and Pokémon in droves. The lighthouse Ampharos is terribly ill, they say, and she's the most powerful Ampharos in the country…_"

Saylee looked up at the falling leaves, feeling conflicted. Red was east of here and west of Kanto, which considerably reduced the slice of land that she had to search for her brother. On the other hand, she'd brought up Morty among the monks and they'd all talked about how accurate his visions always were. If they were never wrong—and his scoreboard so far apparently suggested that this was the case—then she would definitely find Red once it started to snow. In that case, following an unnatural epidemic that was softening up powerful Pokémon wasn't a bad way to kill time until then. Odds were good that Team Rocket were involved somehow, whether they were the cause or if they would simply appear to scavenge among the suffering.

She weighed both options in her head for a moment, but in the end she tipped west. It felt like the right way to go. "Thanks for the tip," she said. "How long, roughly, do you think it would take to get to Olivine from Ecruteak?"

{}

{}

_That shadow ball that Georgia took from Morty's Gengar? She survived with 1HP. ONE. GORRAM. HEALTH. POINT. This girl is soul sisters with Carrie._

_Also, I remember how in GSC the entrance to the Bell Tower (Tin Tower back then because of a translationderp, apparently) was right off of Ecruteak? The Bell Path didn't exist. When I first saw that path in HeartGold, it absolutely took my breath away. It still does. It's one of the most beautiful locations in the game and I love it to bits. HeartGold in general was one big, beautiful nostalgia trip for me, and it remains my favourite Pokémon game to date largely for being such a beautiful remake of what was previously my favourite instalment._

_(Yes, I know there are a great many other video games with prettier, more detailed graphics. I don't care. Being less beautiful than something else is not the same as ugly. It's still a beautiful game, and most importantly it's _fun_. The prettiness is just the icing on the cake, as it should be. /Videogamerant_)


	15. Chapter 14

_Pokémon: 14 Deaths: 0_

Olivine City was a port town that was nearly a week's walk away from Ecruteak City, through a reservation area of wild fields and grass and several large farms. Tempted though she was by the Bell Monastery's vast library of ancient texts, Saylee chose not to linger but instead to set out immediately for Moomoo Farm, the nearest farm from Ecruteak. It was still three days' walk away, and the days were getting much shorter. The reservation area had a worn dirt path through it for travellers, which wild Pokémon tended to avoid. A few trainers came on and off the path, going into the grassy areas to fight wild Pokémon, but after less than a days' walk Saylee stopped seeing them. Most trainers were clearly daytrippers, not campers. On the second day, Saylee elected to keep walking after dark for a while, with Georgia and her impeccable night vision as a guide, but it was cold going and Saylee gave up after an hour to release Chip and pitch camp under some trees. Soon her thick sleeping bag wasn't going to be enough to keep her warm at night, even with Chip curled up next to her.

"Ooft," Saylee muttered, pulling an extra jumper out of her bag and pulling it on over her clothes to sleep in. "I miss Chaz. After he evolved into a Charizard, I never got cold at night. He was so big to start with, and he just got bigger…"

"That's what be happenin' when you're gettin' older," said Chip, who was already more than a foot longer than when he'd first evolved.

"Not for humans," Saylee said, snuggling into her sleeping bag and pulling it as tightly shut as she could while still having room to breathe. "I'm probably not going to get much taller than I am right now. Fatter, maybe, if I gorge myself on sweets, but not taller. When I get old enough, actually, I'll probably start getting smaller."

"_Smaller_?" Georgia said incredulously. "You 'umans're roight weird, you are."

"You'll be alright with keepin' the first watch, Georgia?" Chip asked, climbing on top of Saylee's sleeping bag and settling down to sleep.

"Just foine, moy love, oi'll wake you if anythin' int'restin' 'appens."

"Ta," Chip mumbled, drifting off. "Lee, what about your dreamcatcher?"

"I'm just getting warm in here, I'm not getting out for it now," Saylee said, glancing at her bag. "I put the other four's pokéballs in with it. It can look after them tonight." It was too cold to have Wendy or Tobias out overnight, and Mary complained of cold more often now that she didn't have as much wool. Nider just complained, often and loudly, if he was even the least bit chilly. Georgia, being a rock, didn't really experience hot and cold the way fleshy creatures did, so she was content to sit out and keep watch. Chip could feel cold, theoretically, but it would have to be very cold indeed to overcome his internal fires and the hot coals that were set into his back and head. Saylee's sleeping bag was warming up just from Chip being on it. "Goodnight, you two."

"Goodnight, Georgia, Lee…"

"G'noight, moy loves."

{}

"Lee! Wake up! Quick!"

"Mphblguh?" Saylee muttered, staring around the blackness in confusion. What was going on? Where was she? What was happening?

"Lee!" A little black-and-white face appeared in her line of vision, lit by the fires on top of its head. Saylee's head cleared. "Chip? What's going on? It's still dark out…"

"Georgia was just wakin' me up to swap watches and it suddenly ran outta nowhere and started starin'!" Chip insisted.

"_What_ did?" Saylee said, groping for her glasses and sitting up once they were in hand. The metal on the frames was freezing, but she needed to be able to see. All she got without her glasses was an impression of something large and yellow glowing in the dark.

It was tall, taller than Saylee, yellow-bodied with black stripes and a white face and belly. Its face sported an odd black-and-blue crest, like a mask, and some kind of purple mane flowed down its back like a cape. White sparks of electricity crackled off of it in the dark.

Saylee took her glasses off again. As a vague yellow glow, the creature was familiar.

"One of the Beasts," she whispered, putting her glasses back on to get a good look. "The Beast of Lightning…" She thought back to her conversations with Morty and Eusine. They'd mentioned two Beasts besides Suicune; which one had been the Lightning Beast? "Raikou?" she guessed.

Raikou inclined its head briefly at the sound of its name, and then turned in the direction of Olivine. It crouched and darted forwards. In the blink of an eye, it was gone.

"What was that, then?" Georgia said, confused. "That _thing_…"

"It were glowin' like the lights that were leavin' the Burned Tower," Chip said in awe.

"It's going towards Olivine too," Saylee noted. _Why? Is it something to do with the epidemic out there? Is Ho-oh sending out its servants to deal with it? _Why?_ I know that gods like Ho-oh are worshipped because they're believed to be able to cause miracles and protect people, but from what Vera's told me they don't have a great track record of actually _doing_ anything…_

Her thoughts derailed as she yawned hugely. She was too tired and her brain too foggy to figure it out. If Georgia and Chip were switching watches, it had to be about one in the morning. "Georgia, we'd better sleep," she said. "Sunrise is in about seven hours, and I'm sure we can get moving a while before that."

"Roight you are, moy love." Georgia rolled over and went to sleep. Chip sat up, now wide awake, but stayed on Saylee's sleeping bag, keeping her warm.

She didn't feel frightened at all by Raikou's appearance. It had only stopped and stared at them for a bit without running off. Besides, with Chip and Georgia, she felt perfectly safe.

{}

"Oooft, aye," Mary said, wool buzzing as she looked around. "Can ye no' feel that?"

"Kind of," Saylee said, trying to smooth down her pigtails. It had been two days since her strange encounter with Raikou, and her hair was still springing up into the air and crackling whenever she tried to smooth it down. Her tights kept buzzing, too. When she had climbed over the fence into the empty farm field that they were now crossing, the metal in the fence had zapped her briefly. "It's going the same way as us, and it's left a hell of a trail…"

"Heard all sorts ae stories 'bout Raikou when I wis a lamb," Mary said, sniffing the air. "Some folk said it's an Ampharos that got well powerful, ken?"

"It was big and yellow," Saylee said thoughtfully. "And had some kind of white fluff on its face…"

"There you go, then," Mary said proudly. "Ahh, I wish you'd thought tae get me oot tae see it! Must've been a sight an' a hauf!"

"It was," Chip agreed. "But it came and was gone so quick…"

_Ampharos…_ "Hey, Mary," Saylee said, "when we first met you, didn't you say your mum's a lighthouse keeper?"

"Aye," Mary said proudly. "Brightest tail on the sea!"

"Does she live in Olivine?" Inwardly, Saylee cursed herself for not realizing earlier. She ought to have known the moment Mr Pokémon brought up the lighthouse in his call and felt terrible for forgetting.

"Aye," Mary said happily. "Cannae wait tae see 'er…"

"I think she's ill, Mary," Saylee said softly. "Mr Pokémon told me that the lighthouse Ampharos in Olivine is one of the worst affected by the epidemic. She might not be in great shape…"

Mary looked stricken. Saylee felt awful for having to burst her excitement like that, but it had to be better than Mary only finding out when she actually saw her mother ill. Later that day, they started to see just how bad it was.

They crossed two more fields that were clearly in use—the grass was short, not clipped but bitten, and the water run had recently been repaired to keep fresh water running through the field—but were entirely devoid of life. Finally, Saylee came across a large red barn with a two-story house next to it. The barn was a fairly modern edifice, set on a solid stilt structure above the ground and made out of some kind of insulated metal that had been painted red, but the house was a stone-walled building of a somewhat older style. There were toys in the front yard, but no sign of children or Pokémon.

"Yeah, the whole herd's sick," the farmer complained morosely when Saylee knocked on his door to ask about the purpose of his vast and completely empty grass fields. "Moomoo's the herd leader, so if we could just make her better her milk could heal the rest…" He rubbed his stomach; he looked fairly queasy himself, and had the pale, lank look of a large man who hadn't been eating and had lost some weight. "My little girls are sick too," he said helplessly. "If I were you, miss, I'd turn around and go straight back to Ecruteak."

Saylee thought about the little bag that she'd been sent by Vera the previous day. Apparently the berries were good for sicknesses of the stomach, and Saylee had hoped to hang onto them in case she or her own Pokémon got sick, but… "You could try feeding her these berries," she said, digging out the bag. "If they help, then their medicinal effect should come out in Moomoo's milk, right? I understand that Miltank are quite good at that…"

"That they are," the farmer agreed, taking the bag and peering at the round blue berries inside. "Well, can't hurt. If it works, I'll owe you a good few bottles!"

"Thank you," Saylee said, following him into the barn with Chip and Mary at her heels. There was a ramp up into the barn, which the farmer could barely climb up, and Saylee had to push the door open for him because he hadn't the strength himself. "They might help your mother," she added to Mary.

"Aye, Miltank milk's s'posed tae be the good stuff," Mary agreed, brightening up.

Moomoo was the biggest, fattest Miltank that Saylee had ever seen. She was lying on a pile of hay and blankets at the back of the barn, moaning weakly. Fifty-odd other Miltank lay about the huge barn, none of them looking well at all. A few were trying to eat out of a large feed bin at one side of the room, a few more were sipping at the water run, and more than a few were being sick into a pit in one corner. Mary looked nervous again at the sight of how sick they were. Chip carefully covered his nose with his paw. Saylee couldn't tell if it was because he was afraid of catching the blight or if it was just because the place really _smelled_ like a barn full of sick Miltank.

"Moomoo, we've got some medicine for you," the farmer said, patting her gently on the head. "Can you open your mouth?" Moomoo's jaw slowly and laboriously drooped open, and he fed the berries to her one at a time. She could barely chew, grinding each berry once between her teeth before swallowing weakly. After three, her breathing got noticeably easier and she started to chew more; six and her eyes opened.

"Mmm… my belly feels a bit better," she sighed. "Can I have some more?"

"There's three more," the farmer said, tipping them all into her mouth at once. "How do you feel now?"

"Much better!" Moomoo rolled onto her feet and stretched. "Thank you so much! Where did you get those wonderful berries?"

"I think they're imported," Saylee said apologetically. "They're all I've got. I don't have any more for the herd… or your little girls, I'm sorry," she added to the farmer.

"Well then, I guess it's up to me, isn't it?" Moomoo said, lying down again. Her stomach rumbled. "I'll give you a shout when I feel up for milking, Ted."

"Thank you so much," the farmer said repeatedly, leading Saylee back into the house. "With Moomoo's milk, we can heal the whole herd and the girls!"

"Really? Moomoo's better?" his wife said excitedly, having overheard them as she came down the stairs. She was a stout but pretty woman who, unlike her husband, still looked rosy-cheeked and healthy. "That's wonderful! You know, dear," she added to Saylee, "it's getting late, you know how it gets darker earlier this time of year, so why don't you stay here for tonight? We owe you that, at least!"

"Thank you very much," Saylee said gratefully. "Do you have any idea what's causing the sickness?"

"I'm afraid not," the woman said with a frown. "None of our food's rotten, the Miltank prefer hay and that's alright too, we checked… it's some kind of virus, I suppose. Don't worry, dear, I've been alright, so if I make your tea you won't catch a thing off me!" Mary and Chip both looked excited at the prospect of dinner.

"I don't want to press you too much," Saylee said, "but do you think there'll be enough dinner for all of my Pokémon?"

{}

"Do you know," Wendy said thoughtfully, looking around them as the seven of them stretched out or snuggled up around the mismatched furniture of the guest bedroom, "Georgia, you're the only one who hasn't yet evolved!"

"That be true," Chip agreed. "I'm evolved, Nider's just been, Toby a tad afore, an' Mary were at the same time as me… Wendy were first, weren't you, evolvin' twice afore anyone else!"

"We takes toime to evolve, we does," Georgia said placidly. "You lot ain't got no patience at all, you ain't. Oi'll evolve in me own toime."

"Then you'll be a Graveller," Saylee said, taking a sip from her cup of tea. The farmer's wife had insisted on keeping her topped up on the hot brew, certain that her own fondness for it was what kept her from catching the illness. "You'll have legs then because you'll be too heavy to float. Oh, and four arms." She was looking forward to it herself; she'd never gotten to see Geoff evolve, after all.

"Four? _Cool_!" Tobias said excitedly, fluttering around Georgia's head. "Hey, do _I_ evolve again?"

"I didn't know that you evolved _once_, Toby," Saylee admitted. She'd tried searching the Pokédex for Togepi and Togetic before, but she'd only gotten various random fairy tales. None of them had mentioned another form for Togetic. "One story said that you're related to angels."

"_You_? An _angel_?" Mary laughed, flicking her tail. As always, Tobias immediately began chasing it. "A bloody nuisance is what you are."

"Yeah, but you'd miss me if I went home," Tobias said with a cheeky grin. "Do you evolve any more, Mary?"

"Aye, o' course!" Mary declared. "Someday, I'm gaunnae be an Ampharos like ma maw!"

"Me mam were a Typhlosion," Chip added. "An' me Da. I'm wantin' t'be strong like they someday."

"You will be," Saylee promised him. "Have you ever thought about being a Nidoking, Nider?"

"What, like Big Ned?" Nider said in surprise. "He's in charge of the herd back home. Most of us thought it was just a legend, turning into a King, at least until Big Ned did it. Smug bastard never said how."

"He must've found a Moon Stone," Saylee explained. "Moon rocks that emit 'cosmic radiation', whatever that is. It'll turn a Nidorino into a Nidoking, though."

"_Really_?" Nider said excitedly. "That'd be _badass_! Where do you get stuff like that?"

"Well, the moon, I assume," Saylee said with a shrug. "Down here… I really don't know. Hikers find them up in the mountains sometimes, I hear. Olivine's a port town, they must have foreign and exotic traders in a lot, maybe we'll find one there…" She drained the rest of her tea and set the cup aside. "Right, it's very late and we'll want to be up bright and early tomorrow. Let's get some sleep."

"Early's not bright, not this time o' year," Chip muttered, curling up next to Saylee. Tobias snuggled down between him and Mary while Nider and Georgia both thumped down into their own spots. Wendy fluttered over next to Georgia again.

"Maybe they traders you're talkin about'll hae them berries too, aye?" Mary said quietly. Saylee reached over and stroked her soft wool, ignoring a small zap of static.

"I'm sure they will," she promised.

{}

Saylee figured that she could make the walk to Olivine in one full day if she started early. She set out before dawn with Chip and Mary, thanking the farmer for his hospitality and gratefully accepting a bottle of milk from Moomoo. In the pre-dawn gloom there wasn't anybody else on the main road to the city, but as the day wore on and houses became more frequent, Saylee still didn't see anybody.

It soon became clear that a _lot_ of people and Pokémon were sick.

Almost no wild Pokémon appeared on the road, even though tracks indicated that they crossed and used it as much as humans did. At one point a Persian crossed the path ahead of them, holding two of her baby Meowth in her mouth by the scruff of their necks. Three more were draped over her back. All five of the kittens were mewling about their stomachs hurting. The Persian glared at Saylee, as if daring to try anything against her kittens, before hurrying away as quickly as she could without dropping any of them.

"I'm not likin' this, Lee…" Chip muttered. "What be wrong wi' everyone?"

"Let's get to the main port and find out," Saylee said, following the road towards Olivine. The dirt path soon became a cobbled road, and soon a paved street. An hour later, they crested a hill, and the sea stretched out before them, sparkling blue and smelling of salt. The scattered houses that they passed increased steadily in number and density as they got closer to the waterfront.

Very few people were outside. Some of the few people that Saylee saw were sick themselves, wearing breathing masks and hunched over sore stomachs as they went shopping for food and necessities for relatives even sicker than themselves. Some fairly healthy-looking people were clustered in groups, muttering about something that was causing them to throw dark looks in Saylee's direction.

"Is that the lighthouse?" Tobias asked, pointing up at the huge white tower that loomed over the town.

"That'll be it," Saylee agreed. Mary immediately dropped on all fours and began to run towards it. "Mary, wait!"

Saylee ran after Mary with Chip and Nider at her heels. Tobias and Wendy went flying on ahead. Georgia fell behind, the heavy rock-type unable to keep up.

There was a large crowd standing in front of the lighthouse, shouting loudly. There was a yell of pain from Mary. A Machop had attacked her.

"Mary!" Tobias cried, darting forwards. He just narrowly dodged a Fearow as it dove into the attack. It hit Wendy full in the abdomen instead, sharp beak ripping Wendy almost in half.

"Wendy!" Saylee screamed, diving to catch her as she fell from the sky. She heard a scream of horror from Georgia and the Fearow backed off somewhat as several rocks were flung hard at its head. Georgia appeared at Saylee's elbow as she clutched Wendy's dripping body.

"Wendy," Georgia said shakily. "Are you alroight, moy dear? Wendy, love… Wendy…"

"How could you?!" Chip raged, spitting fireballs at the attacking Fearow.

"Get out of it!" The great bird cawed back. "You're not wanted here! Go on, push off!"

"I'm so sorry, Georgia," Saylee said shakily, feeling something unmentionable dripping down her arms from Wendy's corpse. "She's not getting up again. I'm so sorry…"

The Machop went flying over her head, blown away by Tobias' power, but Tobias and Mary were already fighting a Poliwhirl and a second Machop.

"Sorry?" Georgia growled, hefting a huge rock the size of herself out of the ground. "Sorry's what that bloody Fearow's going t'be…"

{}

{}

_That moment where you cack it because you casually walk down a route and suddenly HAI THAR RANDOM RAIKOU. I had a personal dilemma about whether this counted as a first encounter which ceased to matter when Georgia got a critical hit with magnitude 10 on the next Pokémon I saw, a Meowth. _

_Also, my first death of this run. Freaking Fearow with bloody pursuit when I tried to switch Wendy out… Georgia then hit a critical Rock Throw against the killer. That was awful. I was doing so well…_

_RIP Wendy the Beedrill, level 4-22_


	16. Chapter 15

_Pokémon: 13 Deaths: 1_

"I'm so, so sorry…"

Saylee sat in the clinic, one hand on the jar of ashes that used to be Wendy and the other resting on Tobias' back. Tobias was muttering prayers for Wendy's soul while choking back sobs. Georgia was folded up with her face behind her arms, not looking at anyone. The attacking Fearow had been wheeled into surgery to have its wing reattached. His trainer had been enraged at first, but once he'd seen Wendy's corpse cradled in Saylee's arms he had become grudgingly apologetic, and an older man had called off the other attacking trainers.

"Some thugs in black tried to steal Lily before," the old man explained, holding his cane in one hand and his hat to his chest with the other. "We fought 'em off an' moved Lily from the clinic back to the lighthouse… they came back, though. Fought 'em off again, but… well, we've all been wary of outsiders now…"

"Lily's ma Maw's name," Mary bleated weakly. "Is she okay?" The old man looked away without saying anything.

"I'm so sorry," the Fearow trainer repeated. "That's no excuse, it was too extreme, I didn't mean for him to _kill_…"

"Fearow are very predatory birds," Saylee said softly. "Beedrill just look like a big chunk of flying food to them. Yours could use some training in knowing how to hold back."

"This is aw ma fault," Mary sniffed. "If I hadnae gone runnin' off like that…"

"It missed me," Tobias said, his voice wobbling. "It was coming for me and I dodged and it hit Mary instead…"

"It was an _accident_," Saylee said, hugging Tobias to her. "Nobody _meant_ for it to happen… just a horrible accident…"

"Accident," Goergia muttered hoarsely. "Oi seen _accidents_ un'ergroun'. Down there, tunnels collapse an' rock all th' toime. _Them's_ accidents." Angry, accusing eyes glared at the Fearow trainer. "That thing _killed_ 'er. On _purpose._"

"And you threw a boulder so hard at him that you tore his wing off!" the Fearow trainer said sharply. "It'll be years of surgery and healing before he can fly again, if ever! His beak'll probably never heal right, either!"

"You made sure he got his," Saylee said to Georgia. She let Tobias go and crouched down next to the sullen Geodude. "And his trainer needs to make it clear what he's done wrong and why he's never to do it again." She gave the trainer a hard glare and he slunk off to check on his Fearow.

"Would we be in trouble if we were killin' anyone?" Chip asked, sniffing at Wendy's tin. Saylee petted his head tentatively. He had more control since evolution; when his fires were banked, the coals were slightly warm to the touch rather than burning.

"In cold blood? Yes," Saylee said, looking around them. "In an accident like this, where you really should have known better… if you barbecued a young Sunkern, say, or Mary electrocuted a Magikarp… any incident where you didn't let up on a weaker opponent… yes, you'd be in _huge _trouble."

"Daddy says that being a true warrior doesn't just mean being strong," Tobias put in. "It means having the control to use your strength properly. He an' Mummy also said… killing's not always, all the time bad. Sometimes you have to…"

"There are situations that you can't predict, and I'm not going to say no killing under any circumstances ever," Saylee said softly. "I just hope that none of you ever do."

"If you want, miss," a nurse said nervously, "we can take that casket out and give her a burial at sea. Then Lugia'll protect her."

"Lugia?" Saylee asked, clutching Wendy's remains protectively. The name sounded familiar, but her brain wasn't fully functioning beyond mentally replaying Wendy's death over and over. "Who's that?"

"The sea god," the nurse explained. "They say he's not always that fond of humans… that's why we built the lighthouse, you see, to guide ships safely through his whirlpools. But he protects Pokémon, so he'll protect your Beedrill. We bury all of our Pokémon at sea."

"I'll guide you up to the lighthouse in the morning, if you want," a woman offered, stepping away from a group that had been hovering nervously nearby throughout Saylee's whole conversation with the Fearow's trainer. She was quite short, with tied-back blue hair and dark freckles across her nose. "Jasmine's guarding Lily right now, but we're friends, so if I vouch for you… I'm sure you're not one of those sneaky thieves," she said firmly. "When their Pokémon got hurt, they ran away and left them…"

"Can we go bury Wendy right now, then?" Saylee asked, standing up. "Come on, everybody. We need to go say goodbye."

Georgia was the last to reluctantly get up and follow. "Oi ain't scared o' no water," she mumbled when Chip prompted her to go. "I jus'… I don't want t' say g'bye…"

Chip decided to leave it for a more delicate time to ask if the sand rolling off her cheeks was the Geodude equivalent of crying.

{}

"Bye, Wendy. I'll be missin' you."

"Bye, Wendy. I winnae forget you…"

"Rest in peace and contentment, Wendy."

"Wish I knew you better. See ya."

"Farewell, moy dear. Sorry oi din't protect you… this toime…"

"Don't blame yourself, Georgia. That way madness lies, trust me. Just don't forget her. Keep her alive in your memory and she'll never be gone."

"Oi ain't gonna forget her. Oi never could…"

{}

"Can't sleep?" Saylee said softly, leaning over the edge of her dorm bed in the local hostel. They were bunk beds, but the hostel was otherwise empty, so Saylee was sleeping on a top bunk while Chip, Toby, Mary and Nider slept in a cosy-looking heap on the bottom. Georgia, however, was sitting in the far corner, producing small rocks from somewhere and repeatedly crumbling them into sand.

"Oi keep seein' it, every toime oi close moy oyes…" Georgia whispered. "That thing ripped 'er apart, an' there weren't nothin' oi did… nothin' oi could do… every other toime, oi were roight there, oi could 'elp 'er, but…"

"It's not your fault," Saylee said softly, climbing out of her bunk and padding over to crouch next to Gerogia.

"Oi _know_ that," Georgia said. Her voice cracked. "_That's_ what 'urts. There weren't _nothin'_ oi could do… not for _Wendy_… oi ain't evolved, an' oi couldn't protect someone oi loved…" Saylee reached out and hugged the warm, living rock in her arms.

"You'll get stronger," Saylee promised. "And… accidents happen, even to the strongest of us. I've seen terrible accidents happen to Pokémon much stronger than you or Wendy. And I know that it's hardest when you lose someone you love."

"Oi got used t'sleepin' next t'Wendy," Georgia murmured. "Feel lonely wi'out 'er 'ere."

"I'll stay here with you," Saylee promised. "I miss her too. I always will. I miss everyone I lose…"

Georgia slowly reached out and wrapped her arms around Saylee while the two of them cried quietly.

{}

Saylee's guide insisted on waiting until long after sunrise before taking her up the lighthouse tower. Saylee could see where she was coming from; late-night intrusions would make anyone nervous, and the vigilantes outside the lighthouse had been jumpy enough during the day. Still, Saylee felt impatient. Something was very wrong in Olivine, and she was starting to get a feel for what.

The lighthouse was, primarily, a tourist location; the bottom floor had a number of dioramas about Olivine at various stages of its history and the first floor had an exhibition on Pokémon who lived in the sea around Olivine. The second floor had a cinema show about Olivine's history, and the third was a wide-open room with drinks machines, benches, and a balcony for viewing the sea and the city. Saylee's guide, a woman named Connie, unlocked a door that was only accessible from the balcony and lead Saylee up a ladder to the maintenance rooms where equipment for the lighthouse and tourist areas was kept. There was also an apartment where the human lighthouse officer normally lived, but it was empty. They were probably in the hospital.

"All of the police officers are sick," Connie said morosely. "Almost all the doctors, too. The Pokémon clinic nurses have had to run around checking on humans and Pokémon alike, and there's only two of them left! It just keeps getting worse…"

"And nobody can figure out the cause?" Saylee asked, looking at a display of family photographs. There was dust gathering on them.

"The doctors were looking into it, but then they all got ill," Connie sighed. "They must've found something contaminated and caught it… here we go." She peered up at a trapdoor in the ceiling. "Lily lives up there. Jasmine? It's Connie. I've got guests. Jasmine? Can you hear me?"

"Connie?" a voice called through the trapdoor. "Um, I need the password…"

"Steel strong," Connie hissed. "Can you let us in?"

After a moment, the trapdoor slid aside. It had been dark inside of the tower because none of the lights were on, but there was light in the top room, and in the sudden shaft of light Saylee couldn't quite see the girl who was peering down at them. Then Jasmine retreated and a stepladder dropped down to them.

Saylee climbed up after Connie, wincing in the bright sunlight. The room was circled with windows, outside of which Saylee could see a balcony and a stunning vista of city and rolling hills in one direction and sparkling sea in the other. In the middle of the room was a circular arrangement of mirrors the likes of which Saylee had never seen before. They were all a little angled, and clearly intended to catch the faintest glow and bounce it into a light that could be seen for miles around. In the daytime, with the lightkeeper ill, it was just a dim maze of mirrors. Saylee had never seen so many in one place before, and it made her uncomfortable. It reminded her of something her mother had once told her, something halfway between a superstition and a fairy tale.

Saylee had been very small, and she had been staring into a pool that you could see your reflection in and had asked her mother about "the little girl living in the puddle". Her mother had told her that it was just her, a picture of her in anything that reflected, but that some people thought that there was another world in reflections, with another you and everything. If you got between two mirrors, you could see hundreds or millions of other worlds, infinite numbers of them. But she also said that somewhere, out there, was a shadowy Pokémon that could slip between worlds through reflections, and in that infinite loop of worlds it would certainly be there and come through the reflections, coming for you…

It was just a silly superstition, a story to frighten children. As she recalled, it was often used to make her and Red go to sleep when they were told, her mother threatening them with two small mirrors. Still, it was slightly unsettling to see millions of flickers of movements every time she moved. She kept watching them all from the corner of her eye, in case one moved when it shouldn't or didn't when it should. Connie and Jasmine had already disappeared into the maze of mirrors, so she let Chip, Mary and Nider out for some company that wasn't her.

"I be seein' the back o' me own head," Chip said in awe, looking around. "This where your mam be livin', is it, Mary?"

"Cool," Nider said, inspecting his horn in a mirror. "Take a look at this handsome beast."

"_Maw_!" Mary bleated, darting between the mirrors. Saylee followed her to the centre, a little living area with a low bed on which lay a slender yellow creature.

Lily didn't look much like a Mareep or Flaaffy. She had no wool at all. Her skin was yellow with black rings, and from her short arms and slender upper body looked to be entirely bipedal. Her tail was much longer than Mary's, and the bulb on the end was red. It flickered weakly from time to time.

"You must be Lyra," a human girl said softly. She was small and slight in a white dress and pastel green cardigan, with incredibly long brown hair which she had pushed over one shoulder to avoid sitting on as she sat next to Lily. Mary ran past her to nuzzle her mother. "And is this Mary?"

"Wee Mary?" Lily said weakly. "As I live an' breathe… lookit you, aw grown up an' evolved!" She nuzzled Mary back. Electricity sparked across both of them, making Lily's tail glow briefly.

"This is Jasmine," Connie said, introducing the humans. They stepped aside to give mother and daughter some private time.

"I heard about your Beedrill," Jasmine said softly, shaking Saylee's hand. "I'm so very sorry."

"Thank you… What happened here?" Saylee asked, looking out of one of the plate-glass lighthouse windows. She didn't want to think about Wendy right now. It was still too raw. Neither she nor Georgia had slept the previous night, and the other four Pokémon kept waking up from nightmares. None of them had seen a death like that before.

Saylee wished she hadn't. It wouldn't have made a difference. It never got any easier.

"It started about a month ago," Jasmine explained. "Just a little, at first. The weaker groups—old people, young children, the already sickly. We thought it was just a stomach bug, but then Pokémon started going down too, and that's odd…"

"…because humans and Pokémon can't normally catch the same viruses," Saylee agreed. "Most Pokémon can't catch the same sicknesses as each other. So it's not a virus. Did anything else happen about a month ago?"

"Ummm…" Jasmine fiddled with her hair thoughtfully.

"They started building the Pokémon trainer tower," Connie suggested. "It's going to be the first facility that's properly dedicated to competitive battling. They're building it up the Enucius river, but as far as I know none of the workers have gotten sick…"

Saylee was starting to get an idea. "Where's the Enucius river?"

"Um, west of here," Jasmine murmured. "It's the biggest river into the sea. It's where we get most of our waters supplies from…"

Saylee's pokégear rang which made her jump. She scrambled to pick it up, not wanting to disturb the quiet of the tower. "Hello?" she said tentatively. The caller ID said _mother,_ which meant it was Vera; her actual mother's phone line, when it could connect, came up as _Mum_.

"_I found what you were looking for,_" Vera said immediately. "_A rare rock collector came through New Bark and I managed to trade it off of him. It won't send through the portpad, though, for some reason, so Darren's offered to deliver it."_

"I'm in Olivine right now," Saylee said with a frown. "It'll take him a few days to get here, then…"

"_She's in Olivine,_" Vera said to someone else. "_Don't worry. His brother has a Kadabra that's going to teleport them over. He just checked and it teleports psychically just fine. Don't ask me why, I never did anything but guard duty in the science department. They'll be in the Olivine market in a few minutes._"

"Brilliant! Thank you," Saylee breathed.

"_No problem. Any word on the Rockets in Olivine_?"

"Been and gone," Saylee said, lowering her voice. "I'm not sure if they were scared of catching the illness or just lost interest in Pokémon that were too sick to fight."

"_They never did tend to waste a lot of budget on nursing. There are more cost-effective ways to temporarily incapacitate powerful Pokémon. I'll call you if I hear anything else._"

"Thanks," Saylee said, turning back to Jasmine and Connie, who were arguing quietly about something. Chip bounded over to Saylee.

"Lee!" Chip said breathlessly. "We've got to be goin' to Cianwood!"

"Cianwood? Why?" Saylee asked in surprise. "Where is that?"

"It's, um, it's an island village," Jasmine said tentatively. "It's not too far from here, it's just, uh, that it's on the other side of the, uh, the Whirl Islands…"

"It's got a fantastic pharmacy," Connie added. "We were just saying that if anyone had medicine that could help the Pokémon here, it would be the apothecary there… the problem is that it's just too far and too dangerous for a human to swim, and all of the water Pokémon in the area are too sick to ferry anyone over…"

"What about your boats?" Saylee asked. "This is a port town, I'm sure people have boats…"

Jasmine bit her lip. "Yes, well… boats, um, haven't been able to pass the, uh, the Whirl Islands," she said uncomfortably. "Not for, uh, about two years now, actually."

"How for no?" Mary demanded.

"Well, there's a reason they're called the Whirl Islands," Connie said, rolling her eyes. "It used to just be because of an old myth about the sea god Lugia, who was said to live in an underwater castle between the islands." She giggled. "When we were kids, we'd all try and swim down to find it… but the waters were safe back then. Lugia did actually live there before, sometimes, but he left like a century ago or something."

"A few, um, two years ago, Lugia, uh, came back," Jasmine said nervously. "And he, well, he came back _angry_. Now there's, uh, all these whirlpools, and there's, uh, Pokémon that can swim right over them, but, well, humans have to swim around, or they, uh, get sucked in, and boats…"

"Th' laird Lugia disnae like humans much," Lily murmured. "Leave 'im in peace an' he winnae bother anyin…"

"Can any of your Pokémon surf?" Connie asked Saylee.

"Toby can fly," Mary said, shaking her head, "but I dinnae 'hink he can fly that far… I'm no great masel', an' water's gaunnae _kill_ Chip an' Georgia…"

"That's why they're not going to Cianwood," Saylee said, looking at Nider. "Mary, how about you and Nider go to Cianwood for the medicine? If you go without me, Lugia probably won't bother you…"

"Bring it oan!" Mary said excitedly. "You a swimmer then, Spikes?"

"No," Nider said, stomping his short, stubby legs pointedly, "so what the hell are you thinkin', Lee?"

"That I know just how to fix that," Saylee promised.

{}

"Lyra! Over here!"

"Hi, Darren!" Saylee called, spotting Darren and a Kadabra in front of the main market. It was a big paved square, surrounded by closed shops and with aisles of abandoned stalls in the middle of the square. Only one store seemed to be open, and as Saylee ran past it she heard someone having a violent coughing fit inside. Darren greeted her with a big, boisterous hug. He was wearing his Cherrygrove Supermarket clerk's apron and name badge, so he must have come straight from work.

"How've you been?" he said, setting her down and looking over her Pokémon. She'd let Tobias and Georgia out on leaving the lighthouse and brought everyone up to speed. "Man, you've caught tons! Hey, is that the little guy?"

"I got bigger," Chip said proudly.

"Really? I was about to say you'd shrunk," Darren teased. Chip spat an ember at his foot. "I surrender!"

"He's funny," Tobias giggled. He flew over to the Kadabra. "Hi there!"

"Mum sent a package for me, right?" Saylee asked. Darren began to pat himself down theatrically.

"Damn, dropped it in hyperspace," he complained.

"We did not travel through hyperspace," the Kadabra said dryly, lifting his spoon and levitating a small bag out of Darren's back pocket. "Hyperspace looks _completely_ different. And smells rather odd."

"Man, they never mention that in the movies—hey!" Darren complained, snatching the bag out of the air. "Keep your spoon out of my pants!"

"There are so many responses you don't want me to make to that," Saylee laughed. Darren bowed and presented the bag to her with a flourish.

"For you, my lady," he said pompously. Saylee stuck her nose in the air and picked up the bag.

"You have done well, for a peasant," she said snottily. "You shall have an extra bowl of rice tonight."

"Oh boy! A whole extra bowl!" Darren squealed, bouncing up and down.

"Is this guy for real?" Mary muttered.

"Dunno, but Toby's bein' right, him's funny," Chip chuckled.

"What's that, then?" Georgia asked, pointing at the bag.

"This," Saylee said, unwrapping and examining the shiny grey stone inside, "is a Moon Stone. Touching it can cause some Pokémon to evolve, like Clefairy, Jigglypuff… and Nidos."

Nider looked quickly from the stone to Saylee. "I could _evolve_?" he breathed. "Be a _King_?"

"Us'll all have t'be bowin' down, then," Chip said. Saylee smiled, leaning down and holding out the stone.

"All you have to do is touch it," she said.

"'Kay…" manoeuvring carefully to avoid scratching Saylee, Nider touched his horn to the Moon Stone.

The response was immediate. Nider actually began to glow as he reared up… and up… and up…

"Chip, Toby, can you go find out where we can get some lunch here?" Saylee asked, looking up at her new Nidoking. He was smaller than Giovanni's, only a little taller than Saylee, but he'd grow in time. "After a growth spurt like that, he's going to be _hungry_."

{}

{}

_A big reason that I love Nidos; their versatility in the area of TMs and HMs. Hello, surfing Nidoking!_

_Also, I went back to Goldenrod to get a replacement team member for Wendy. You'll find out who next chapter in somewhat different circumstances :)_


	17. Chapter 16

Pokémon: 13 Deaths: 1

By the time Nider had gotten the hang of swimming with passengers on his back, it had grown too late to make the sea crossing. Crossing the sea at night, in the dark, was widely regarded as suicidally stupid. So they'd said their goodbyes to Darren and returned to their room for the night, despite Mary's antsiness. In the dawn light, they'd gathered on the beach where the Enucius River flowed into the sea.

"So here's how we're going to do this," Saylee said, clasping her hands together and looking over her Pokémon as they stood in a group on the damp sand. "Nider can make the swim to Cianwood for the medicine with Mary on his back. The rest of us will go upstream. I'm willing to bet that the problem is something getting into the water. Nobody seems to have thought of it here… I wonder if they ever have water pollution here. Anyway, does everyone like that plan?"

"Aye, I'll get Maw's meds!" Mary declared, peering up at Nider. He flexed his new physique proudly as he lifted Mary up and set her on his shoulders, careful to place her between his poisonous spikes without scratching her.

"I'm fired up and ready to go! YEAH!" He bellowed. Mary laughed.

"Saylee?" Tobias said, fluttering to her nervously. "I… I'd like to go to Cianwood with Mary and Nider."

"Really?" Saylee said, glancing at the wide sea in trepidation. "I'd rather you were near me, Toby…"

"I know, but I wanna be with Mary," Tobias said, flushing and quickly adding, "help Mary, I mean! And Nider, too, of course. It's just a medicine trip, anyway!"

Saylee smiled and gave him a hug. "You're right," she agreed, giving him a little push towards Nider and Mary. "See you all this evening, then. Here." She tossed three pokéballs to Mary. "Here's your pokéballs. Just in case you need to make a quick getaway… Toby can return you two and fly back, or all three of you can return for safety. Pokéballs are pretty hard to break. If you're not back by this evening, I'll come looking for you."

"How?" Mary asked, tucking the pokéballs into her wool as Tobias fluttered over to hover next to her. "Nider's the only one who can swim that far."

"_I'll_ swim that far if I have to," Saylee said firmly. _I can always call and get Kaito to help, anyway_, she thought, patting her Pokédex in her pocket. "I'll see you all later, got it? Be careful!"

"Aye, you too!" Mary called. Nider waved and dove into the water.

"Thanks," Tobias said. Saylee winked at him and he flew off, blushing again.

"What was that all 'bout?" Chip asked, watching the little fairy go.

"Young love's a won'erful thing, moy love," Georgia sighed. "Roight then, off we go!"

{}

"Why'd she give us our own pokéballs?" Nider wanted to know as he swam across the open water. "I know they've got locks and stuff to make 'em hard to break when they're full, but when they're empty like this we can just smash 'em and go if we want…"

"Not gaunnae happen till we get Maw's meds, aight?" Mary growled, clutching her wool. "I'll zap yez, see if I dinnae!"

"Like that'd hurt," Nider scoffed.

"Well, _I_ have psychic powers, and I bet _those'll_ hurt," Tobias said menacingly.

"Ceez, fine, I give in," Nider sighed. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't wanna go nowhere. I picked to be with this team, and it's a pretty good gig, so here I'll stay. But we _could_ go, is what I'm saying."

"But yous said it yourself, you winnae," Mary said firmly. "She knows it, tae. I mean, anyin makes a team's got it made, in't they? Get fed, get tae travel, get mates, get strong…" she tapped Nider's ear. "Gaunnae be a King on yer own, were ye?"

"She's just really trusting, is all," Nider mumbled. "Kinda weird. They all say that the trade-off for being in a team is being in a pokéball a ton of the time and havin' to obey your human…"

"Daddy says that Lee trusts Pokémon more than people," Tobias mumbled. "I guess 'cause she's met a load of humans that were bad…"

"Kindae sad, in't it, gettin' fright away from yer ain kind like that?" Mary sighed. "Havenae seen tha' many bad humans, though, 'sides fae they Rocket chumps."

"Haven't hung around with that many humans, so no comment," Nider said with a shrug. Mary shrieked as her seat was dislodged.

"Watch it, yous!" She yelped, clinging on. "You're daein' the swimmin', mind!"

"Not for much longer," Tobias said, flying up into the air to have a look and then back down. "We're nearly there!"

{}

The Enucius River was quite broad, and the land around it was easy enough to follow upstream. It flowed through quite a few fields, where it no doubt served as the drinking water for the herds that lived there. None of the farm Pokémon were outside; they'd all probably been taken into barns like the one on Moomoo Farm to rest until they got better. After a couple of hours of trekking upstream, once the river had curved away from the fields and into the unsettlingly empty forests, Saylee began to hear a noise rising over the burble of the stream.

"What _is_ that?" Saylee said curiously, following the noise upstream.

"Sounds like someone's bein' in pain," Chip said nervously. "Maybe someone bein' sick…"

"There!" Georgia said, pointing at something in the stream. It took Saylee a moment to notice the pale grey head poking out of the river.

"Is that...?!" she gasped, running over to it. "Bloody hell…"

It had a long, slender body with no limbs, just a large head. Its skin was puffy and grey and cracked around its winglike ears. The skin crumbled disgustingly under Saylee's hands as she tried to haul the sick Pokémon out of the river.

"It's a zombie!" Chip yelped, backing away.

"It's a Dratini," Saylee corrected him. "It's trying to shed its skin… myth says they can do that to heal illness and injuries. C'mon, help me get it out…"

The dead, poisoned skin felt utterly revolting under Saylee's fingers, but nevertheless she scraped away, revealing beautiful, deep-blue skin underneath. The shade wasn't quite what she expected.

"You have my gratitude most profound," the dragon gasped, breathing in deep lungfuls of air as she was freed from the confines of her own thick, dead skin. "Never have I suffered a more horrendous experience than this. My attempt to progress in my journey by way of this brook, it is clear, was the worst sort of folly. There resides in the water a terrible foulness which disagreed with my wellbeing and drove me to shed mine skin… too much, alas. Folly again! I was the agent of mine own incarceration!"

"Are you really a Dratini?" Saylee asked, looking along the dragon's body as she flicked the rest of her dead skin off with her tail, noting the two blue baubles on her tail and the horn on her head.

"Nay, though once I was indeed," she corrected Saylee regally. "But my folly, it seems, is not without a boon, for enough has been shed and the transformation for which I journeyed has been thus enabled. My quest to become Dragonair has been most unexpectedly fulfilled! My name, nevertheless, remains Diana." Diana bowed her head to them. "And by what fair names are my saviours known?"

Diana's eloquent, antiquated manner to speech made Saylee want to curtsey to her. "I'm Lyra, but you can call me Lee," she offered. "And this is Chip the Quilava and Georgia the Geodude."

"It is indeed the finest honour to become acquainted with one and all," Diana said, nodding to each of them in turn. "Am I presumptuous to assume that you are travellers, to find yourselves in such a place in company so odd? Be you on a quest your own?"

"You could be sayin' that," Chip said. "We're goin' t'be findin' out what be pollutin' the water. Then we'll be puttin' a stop to it!"

"A most noble quest!" Diana declared. "To you I owe my life itself, therefore permit me to be of aid to you in the vanquishing of the source of this fair stream's foul taint."

"Of course," Saylee agreed. "We're happy to have you. Wow, a _Dragonair…_" she couldn't help giggling just a little. It was surreal to have such a powerful, semi-mythical Pokémon with her. "Okay, come on. I thought it was probably something in the water… and I think I know what. Not too far to go now…"

{}

The pharmacy wasn't too hard to find. The locals were happy to give directions. After the eerily empty streets and paths around Olivine, it was comforting to see the busy beaches of Cianwood. A bell rang in the primary school as they passed, and children spilled out of the classrooms and onto the beach. People were out shopping, working, and socializing, and all of them looked happy and healthy

"Hello there," said the apothecary, a middle-aged man with light blue hair and a good tan, coming out of a back room when he heard the bell over the pharmacy door ring. The pharmacy was a small room which didn't seem to have walls so much as floor-to-ceiling slide-out shelves full of various plants and medicines. "I haven't seen Pokémon like you around here before. Do you have a trainer?"

"We do, but she's in Olivine," Tobias said, flitting over to sit on the counter that ran across one end of the room, separating the back rooms from the customer area. "The lighthouse keeper—Lily—is really, really ill…"

"I'd heard there was illness going around in Olivine, but if Lily's down, that's very serious…" the apothecary said with a frown, ducking under the counter walking along the selection of medicine bottles on display. "Hmmm… how ill is she? Have the Pokémon Centre nurses been able to do anything for her?"

"Not a damn thing," Nider said.

"Then this might call for my special potion…" the apothecary ducked back under the counter and went into his back office where he starting opening drawers, pulling out leaves and powders. "Oh, no… Ceez, at a time like this?" he pulled a small drawer right out and shook it. "There's no thyme!"

"How?" Mary asked, panicking. "How's there no time? We shouldae come sooner…"

"I wouldn't have had any then either," the apothecary sighed. He caught their confused expressions. "I'm out of _thyme_—a herb. It has little green leaves and tiny purple flowers. Quite a bit of it grows by the waterfall… if I can get some, I can mix up my secret potion…"

"We can get it for you," Tobias offered. "Right, guys?"

"Sure, whatever," Nider said, backing out of the door. "Let's get on with it already!"

"Aye, let's shift it!" Mary called, running after him. Tobias started to follow her, but then fluttered back to the apothecary.

"Excuse me, but where _is_ the waterfall?" he asked.

"West side of town," the apothecary said, starting to set out some beakers on the counter. "It's pretty big, so it should be easy to spot. Just head west and follow the cliffs until you find it."

"Thank you!" Tobias flew off to relay the directions to Nider and Mary before they wandered off in the wrong direction. It wasn't hard to find the cliffs, which they followed closely as the apothecary had instructed.

"Look!" Mary said excitedly, spotting the water tumbling over the cliff face. "The waterfall! 'Mon!" They started running towards it.

"Halt!"

"Mary!" Tobias yelled as two huge figures leapt towards her. Nider grabbed her by the tail and yanked her out of the way just before the attackers smashed into the dirt and left a crater where she'd been. Images of a Fearow darting towards Wendy and ripping her apart flashed through Tobias' mind, and he felt suddenly furious.

"Och, ma tail!" Mary complained, flicking it. "Watch it!"

"You're welcome," Nider said sarcastically, cracking his knuckles and facing their opponents. Tobias had seen pictures of them in Professor Oak's lab before.

"They're a Primeape and a Poliwrath!" Tobias said warningly. "They're _really_ strong!"

"Stay 'way fae the wa'erfall, else yous'll be in'eruptin' Mr Chuck's trainin', see?" the Poliwrath ordered, crossing his arms.

"We're not going to interrupt anyone's training," Tobias said irritably. "We just need to fetch some…"

"Naeb'dy's ge'in' frough 'till Mr Chuck sez," the Primeape said, raising his fists. "Now sod off or we'll batter you, see?"

"Bring it oan, yous big lumps!" Mary said angrily, sparking up. The Primeape drew back his fist. Tobias focused on him.

Fighting Pokémon were, more or less by definition, far more brawn than brain. Hernan always said that he'd benefited from two clever trainers, so this wasn't exactly true for him, but these two were hardly Hernan. They didn't look like they could match wits with a Slowpoke. That made it so very, very easy to drive the Primeape into mental overload…

The Primeape fell over unconscious before he could even take a step towards Mary.

"Aye, that's right!" Mary shouted, wool almost doubled in volume as a massive store of electricity built up. "Suck on this, ya dobber!"

Wool went flying everywhere as a bolt of lightning struck the Poliwrath. He keeled over twitching.

"You see what you get for gettin' in our way?" Nider shouted, punching the air. "Booyah!"

"That was great, Mary…" Tobias said, trailing off as he stared at Mary. "Wow!"

"Yer gaunnae attract Venomoth, hangin' yer trap open like that," Mary said, standing up. The rest of her wool fell off and she stared down at herself in surprise. "Oh, ya chubby dancer!"

"Hey, you look like your mum!" Nider said in surprise.

"You look _amazing_," Tobias said shyly. Mary grabbed him around the neck and gave him a hug.

"You were pretty amazin' too, Tobes," she said. "We're a good team, eh?" She stuck her tongue out at Nider when he made gagging noises.

"I'll swim off and leave you here," Nider threatened.

"I'm sure Tobes'll carry me hame," Mary said, stooping to pick up the three pokéballs now lying among random tufts of wool on the ground.

"Hmph. I guess that wasn't _that_ weak."

"_Silver_?" Tobias said in surprise, spotting the red-haired boy watching them sullenly from behind a rock. Standing at his heels was a small black Pokémon with long white claws. It had its own red fringe and sullen expression. "What are you doing here? Who's that?"

"Took her from a stupid idiot who was just using her to show off," Silver said flippantly. "Weakling just gave up when I threatened him. A Sneasel's too good a Pokémon for a weakling like him." The Sneasel preened at this.

"You came here to steal Pokémon?" Tobias said in shock.

"Pffft! _No,_" Silver said, flipping some of his hair out of his face. The Sneasel imitated the motion with her red tufts of fur. "I came 'cause I heard there was a battle master here who's a real tough warrior. Heard he uses a Primeape and a Poliwrath. But if they lost to _you_, they're not that tough. No point in staying here. Later, losers." He turned and ran off, the Sneasel sneering at them and following.

"Haud it!" Mary shouted, starting after him. She stopped abruptly and looked back at the waterfall. "That thyme…"

"I'll fly up and get it, you go after him!" Tobias said. Mary nodded and ran off with Nider in tow. Tobias flew up the waterfall, looking for the plant that the apothecary had described. He spotted the little purple flowers growing at the edge of the cliff over which the waterfall fell. He picked as many as he could carry and, clutching them tightly, flew back down the waterfall.

A man stepped out of the water at the bottom. He was as big and beefy as the Poliwrath, his hair and moustache both brown and spiky.

"Well, hallo there, little fairy!" He boomed. "Are you the reason the flow of the waterfall changed?" he looked around. "Where're Mal an' Payton? They better not be skivin' off their trainin'!"

"They're, uh, kind of unconscious," Tobias said, nervously buzzing around, desperate to go deliver the thyme. "What do you mean, the waterfall changed?"

"Wasn't you, eh?" the big man said, frowning. "Funny thing. Trust me, little guy, I've trained under this waterfall every day for twenty years. It know its moods, and it's never been so _alive_…"

"I've gotta go find my friends," Tobias said, pressing the flowers into the big man's hands. "Can you do me a favour and take these to the apothecary for me?"

"Well, little one, if you beat Mal and Payton, they owe you that service at least!" the man laughed, taking the flowers. "I'll wake 'em up…"

"Thank you!" Tobias called, flying off. He didn't know anything about waterfalls, but he did get the feeling that something was coming from over the sea, and it was headed straight towards the end of the beach that his friends and Silver had run to…

{}

{}

_I bought that Dratini at the Game Corner in Goldenrod rather than taking the Eevee, but for many and various and mostly obvious reasons I didn't want to write Saylee buying a Pokémon, so she finds her instead. So after some level-grinding to get her up to strength, my team now sports a Dragonair! :D_

_I made a few other catches, but none of them are team or plot-relevant, so they've been skimmed over in the story and listed here._

_Name: Diana. Species: Dratini. Nature: Naïve. Ability: Shed Skin. Level: 15_

_Name: Tilly. Species: Tentacool. Nature: Impish. Ability: Liquid Ooze. Level: 13_

_Name: Karl. Species: Krabby. Nature: Hardy. Ability: Shell Armour. Level: 16_

_Name: Selene. Species: Staryu. Nature: Serious. Ability: Illuminate. Level: 19_

_Name: Verity. Species: Vulpix. Nature: Modest. Ability: Flash Fire. Level: 22_


	18. Chapter 17

_Pokémon: 18 Deaths: 1_

The trees and plants soon gave way to cleared, flattened lanned with stakes and flags at regular intervals staking out a crude floorplan. The Battle Complex was clearly going to be a large-scale operation.

"Here we are," Saylee said, pointing to a metal frame protruding from the middle of the construction site It was surrounded by bright yellow construction equipment. "Never seen equipment like that functioning before… Cranes, bulldozers, wow, even a steamroller. This is a _big_ project. Back home, if you want flat land, someone's got to stomp it down for you. Machop are quite good at that…"

"What's that then?" Chip said, staring at the metal framework.

"The Trainer Tower that Sir Geoffrey and the people in Olivine were talking about," Saylee said, walking towards the site. "And if they have all that mechanical construction equipment, there's something they're going to need. Oi!" She yelled at a man in a hard yellow hat. "Excuse me, but who's in charge here?"

"Not you," the man said, scowling. "This is a restricted area. Bugger off!"

"The fouls words rolling from your tongue are most unwarranted," Diana said, arching over them menacingly. "Defy us not, hardheaded man, for we are on a quest of great import. Where is thy master?"

"Security!" the man yelled over his shoulder. "Look, girl, don't you go startin' around here…"

"We're starting nothing," Saylee said, digging for pokéballs. "I'll even put everyone away. Is that okay with everyone?" Chip nodded and Georgia shrugged. "Diana?"

"I shall yield," Diana said, bowing her head, "if you deem it amenable to a peaceful resolution, Lady Lyra."

"Just Lyra or Lee, please," Saylee said, putting Diana into a pokéball and returning Georgia and Chip. "See? Unarmed. Now, who's in charge, _please_?"

"Is there a problem?" A big security Machamp said, crossing one set of arms and crackling the knuckles of the other set.

"Not at all," Saylee said sweetly. "I just want to speak to whoever's in charge. Or if you like, I could go explain to the police how you're the ones polluting the water…"

"What?!" the construction worker burst out. "We're doing nothing of the sort!"

"Not on purpose, maybe, but trust me, it's happening and a lot of people are very sick," Saylee said testily. "Now are we going to keep wasting time or do I get to talk to somebody important?"

The Machamp had produced a radio—Saylee had no idea where from and didn't really want to know—and was muttering into it. Then he pointed at Saylee.

"You," he said, "come with me to see the foreman."

"With pleasure," Saylee said, stalking past the obstructive construction worker. She was quite glad that had worked. She didn't want to have to attack the construction site. After all, the workers weren't cruel or evil, just kind of dumb.

Several box houses had been set up on the site. The Machamp led Saylee to a standalone with a sign on the door saying "Foreman's Office". Inside, a large man with a double chin and a visi-vest over a suit was sitting behind a desk with a holoscreen in it, judging by the glowing, semitransparent floorplans hovering over it. He pressed a button and they vanished.

"Now then, young lady," the man said with a smile, "what seems to be the trouble?"

"Where do you distil your gas?" Saylee asked. "Those machines out there need the pure liquid stuff, not the cheap gas that motorbikes run on. A big company like this can afford to distil its own, I'm sure, and I did see a couple of Weezing floating around out there. So where do you distil it, and what do you do with the runoff?"

"Now, now, we're a clean-energy company," the foreman said patronizingly. "All of our gas is runoff-free…"

"Aye, right," Saylee cut him off, scowling. It had to be the pigtails. You never looked much older than twelve with pigtails. Pokémon trainers tended to command a certain degree of respect regardless of age, but right now all of her Pokémon were stowed away. Of course, the whole reason she was wearing pigtails and the stupid hat these days was to help any Rockets she ran into to dismiss her as no threat rather than instantly raise the alarm. It had worked well enough in the Slowpoke Well—Proton, whom she'd come face to face with in the Sevii Islands, hadn't recognized her—but an unfortunate side-effect was that she was also not being taken seriously by these dolts.

Saylee pull off her hat and yanked out her hairbands, combing her hands through her hair a couple of times until it fell to her shoulders. Then she put her hands on her hips and glared at the foreman. "There's _always _runoff. You can minimize it, but the whole point of distilling it instead of just chilling it enough to liquefy is to get _rid _of all of the junk that you're burning into the air otherwise. We've all heard about what happened in Kanto over the mountains…" she shook her head. "Look, I'm no chemist, but I know the symptoms of polluted water. Your runoff is getting into the water, which used to be so clean that the people in Olivine don't even own bloody water filters or boil their water! You realize that a whole city, and all the farms around it, are sick because of you?!"

"Now look, you can't blame that on me, I don't distil the stuff!" the foreman protested.

"But you're in charge!" Saylee argued. "That means _you're_ responsible for _everything_ that goes on here!" She sighed. "Look, I'm not here to get into a fight. We wouldn't be talking right now if I was. I'm here to say that there's a problem that _you're_ responsible for fixing, and it doesn't matter if it was an accident or on purpose because it needs fixed _now_, got it?"

"Listen, missy," the foreman growled, "if you think you can just walk in here and tell me how to run my building site—"

Saylee cut off his rant by finally losing her temper and releasing Chip and Georgia. The office was too small for Diana, but Chip and Georgia were enough. Georgia caught the security Machamp's lunge towards them.

"Is him not goin' t'be fixin' it?" Chip asked, quickly assessing the situation and flaring up. There was a strained grunt from Georgia, and then two heavy _thump_s that shook the room.

Saylee looked back to see that the _thump_s were Georgia developing feet, as well as two more arms that allowed her to hold tight onto all four of the Machamp's wrists. Her feet had also spawned on top of the Machamp's. A good blow from a Machamp could shatter a Graveller, but only if the Machamp could move.

"You know, you could be rid of us by now," Saylee commented to the foreman, "if we'd just go have a look at the gas distillery…"

{}

The problem was immediately apparent. The runoff was being collected into a stone pit near the river, where it was being left under a cover to stagnate. The panelling around the pit must have been cracked, allowing the runoff to seep into the soil. Diana peered under the water and confirmed that the source of the poison was seeping out of the earth on the riverbanks.

"Get yourself some Grimer," Saylee advised. "They drink that stuff like it's a milkshake. Only for Mew's sake don't let _them_ near the water, _especially_ if any of them evolve into a Muk. I'm just going to go ahead and tell the citizens of Olivine that you've promised to do this from now on."

The foreman glanced at the distillery thoughtfully. "So… it won't cost anything to feed them and we won't have to pay to ship this shit out anymore?"

Saylee sighed and sat down on the riverbank as the foreman hurried off, ordering his subordinates to hire some Grimer. The oily tint to her reflection, here at the source, was all too familiar.

Georgia sat down next to her, also staring at her distorted reflection in the river with a morose expression. "Are you okay?" Saylee asked. "How do you feel? It must be a lot to get used to, four more limbs and all…"

"Oi'm alroight wi' it," Georgia muttered. "If oi'd just evolved a couple days ago…"

"It wouldn't have saved Wendy, Georgia," Saylee said, putting her hand on Georgia's lower left arm. "It happened so fast… nobody saw it coming. No amount of strength could have saved her. You promised you wouldn't blame yourself…"

"Oi know, but…" Georgia stared at Saylee. "Oi don't know what's worse, thinkin' oi could've saved 'er an' didn't or thinkin' there weren't nothin' anyone could do…"

"Does it make a difference now?" Saylee sighed. "Besides, if it's anyone's fault, it's certainly not yours…"

Something bright and shining flashed past her vision. Glancing down, she saw the water shimmer and then become so clear that she couldn't even see it. She could count every pebble at the bottom of the river, which had to be eight feet deep in the middle. Looking downstream, she saw a shining blue creature running on the water towards the sea. It glowed with a familiar light.

"Suicune!" she shouted, scrambling to her feet and running off in pursuit.

{}

Silver suddenly stopped dead on the seafront, staring across the ocean.

"What's up with him?" Nider asked, looking across the sea. "What the hell's he starin' at?"

"I've… nae clue," Mary muttered, watching the boy uneasily. "D'ye see that?"

"What?" Nider said, squinting at where she quickly pointed before grasping back at the pokéballs that she nearly dropped. Tobias fluttered past them, staring at the sea.

"I see it," he said. "That shimmer?" Mary nodded. "A weird guy that was training in the waterfall said the water's gone all funny, too…"

"Go away," Silver snapped at them, putting the Sneasel in a pokéball. He didn't look around at the three of them, staring fixedly at the shimmer on the water. "I don't want any weaklings chasing her off this time."

"Who?" Mary asked.

Tobias gasped. "Suicune!" he said, pointing.

Suicune was _fast_. No sooner had it appeared over the horizon than it was skidding to a halt on the water before Silver. Waves split before they reached it, leaving it standing in a circle of flat, glass-smooth water.

"There you are, Suicune," Silver said, watching it paw at the water. It bowed its head at the sound of its name. "You're really powerful, huh?" He reached out his hand to it, but suddenly withdrew, glaring at something behind Suicune. "GO AWAY!" he shouted.

Suicune turned and ran down the seafront. It was gone in an instant. At that same moment, a man in a purple suit and white cape dropped down, clutching the ankle of a Jumpluff.

"Beautiful! Magnificent! Astonishing!" Eusine declared excitedly. "After all my years of searching, to have come so close!"

"Go away, you stupid poof," Silver snarled, stalking off down the beach. "You're weak and annoying. You ruined it! You scared her away!"

"Such rudeness! Where are your manners?" Eusine said with a frown. "I cannot imagine why Suicune would have tarried with _you_."

"Because I'm not _weak_ like you!" Silver yelled, rounding on him.

"Ah-ha!" Eusine said, grinning. "Then what do you say to a battle, hmm? Prove that you are indeed strong enough for Suicune! The victor will no doubt be deemed worthy in the fine creature's eyes!"

"Fine!" Silver said, releasing Zeb. Tobias was surprised to see that Zeb had evolved into a large Golbat. "I won't lose to a pathetic poof like you!"

"Language, young man," Eusine said, frowning again. "Druce, I think we had better teach this boy some manners." With a flourish, he released a fat yellow-and-brown Drowzee. "Confusion!"

"Confuse ray!" Silver ordered. The two Pokémon's eyes glowed as each tried to bamboozle the other. Zeb suddenly fell from the sky, flapping desperately with one wing as he seemed to lose control of the other.

"A 'bat like you cannot outdo _my_ psychic powers," Druce said, waving his hands in complex patterns. "Shall I hypnotize him?"

"Please do," Eusine said. "And then your dream eater, I think." Zeb collapsed, unconscious, and began to whimper as Druce fed on his energy while he slept.

"Useless! Get back here!" Silver complained, returning Zeb. "_You_ get this done! Shadow ball!"

"A ghost?" Eusine said in surprise as Silver's ghost, Gareth, appeared. He too had evolved, into a Haunter.

Gareth's disembodied hands rolled an orb of pure blackness and flung it at Druce, who was knocked off of his feet with a wail of pain and failed to rise.

"Druce!" Eusine cried. "Well, fair play to you, young man, you held the advantage! But when attempting to control a ghost, your volatile emotions will hold you both back…" he released a Gastly. "Geary, I do appreciate your offer of assistance. We must defeat this poor soul."

"I don't need your _pity_," Gareth said scornfully. "Are we going to fight or what?"

"Hypnosis!" Eusine ordered.

"No way you're getting to pull that sneaky crap again!" Silver said, returning Gareth and releasing his newly stolen Sneasel. "You, show me what you can do!"

"Against a ghost? All sorts of fun things," she said, raising her claws. Geary's eyes glowed as he began to hypnotize her. She instantly collapsed.

"Already? What good is that?" Silver demanded.

"Finish her with a lick," Eusine ordered. Geary floated over to the fallen Sneasel. He was caught completely off-guard when her claws, suddenly tinged with black, slashed through him.

"Plenty of good, thank you," she said to Silver. "That's a Faint Attack, and it's a _lot_ of fun, as you can see."

"Well, _you're_ not useless," Silver said approvingly as Eusine was forced to return the unresponsive Geary.

"Well, isn't this something," he said. "I didn't expect to end up down to Vash! You may be worthy of Suicune's regard after all…" he released a large, crackling electrode. "But not as much as I! Vash! Thunder!"

"Ooft aye," Mary murmured. "That's the strongest 'leccy power there is…"

"Mum told me that it's powerful, but not very accurate," Tobias said, watching Vash fling huge volts of electricity at the Sneasel, who dodged each one nimbly.

"Try _this_!" she said, slashing her claws again. Ice crystals formed in the air as a blast of freezing wind hit Vash.

"Nice!" Silver yelled. "Freeze that weakling!"

"Easy enough," she responded, dodging another round of Thunder and blasting more frozen air at Vash, freezing the Electrode into a solid lump of ice.

"Now smash him!" Silver shouted excitedly. Before the Sneasel could move, though, Eusine returned Vash.

"Such a volatile assault on an _Electrode_, of all things, is _not_ recommended," he chastised Silver. "I shall concede for today. But from what I have seen, this was more your Pokémon's victory than yours, child. Until you respect your Pokémon enough to realize their full potential, you shall never be worthy of one such as Suicune!" He bowed to Tobias, Nider and Mary. "You are Saylee's Tobias, are you not? Do give her my regards. Come, Helene! We must follow Suicune's path!" he released his Jumpluff again. Even with him clinging to her ankle, Helene ascended and flew away quickly.

"That was cool," Silver said to the Sneasel. "You're _really_ strong. I definitely need you on my team."

"Hey, it's better than sitting around like a trophy pet," she snorted. "By the way, my name's Siren, since you never asked."

"Silver," Silver said shortly, returning her to her pokéball, "and I don't really care, so long as you're really strong." He glared at Saylee's Pokémon. "You want to fight too?"

"Not really," Tobias said, fluttering nervously towards the human boy. "Silver… Eusine's right, you're really tough, so if you were just nicer to your Pokémon…"

"Nobody ever gets anywhere by being _nice_," Silver spat at them. "I don't have time to waste with you weaklings. I'm gonna go find somebody who's actually _strong_ to fight." He released Tyra. "C'mon, Tyra, we're out of here."

"Sure," Tyra said. "'Sup, losers." She was quite a bit larger than before, large enough to easily carry Silver on her back as she dived into the sea and swam away. Tobias started to fly after him.

"Let 'im go, he'll probably run into Saylee that way anyway," Nider said, grabbing Tobias by the leg. "We need those meds before we go anywhere, right?"

"Aye, the… the medicine!" Mary gasped. "Rai a'mighty—the flowers—!"

"It's okay, Mary," Tobias said quickly. "I got the weird guy at the waterfall to run to the apothecary with them. He's probably mixed it up by now."

Mary gave a loud _baa_ of joy and hugged Tobias around the neck. "Yer a genius, Tobes!" she said, kissing him on the cheek. "A right angel, you are!"

"I-It's nothing," Tobias stuttered. Nider sniggered. "…You shut up."

{}

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_Doing this a little early but I will probably have no time tomorrow because AAAAHHH ONSTAGE TOMORROW NIGHT AND I'M ONLY CHORUS BUT SCARING THE LIVING SHIT OUT OF THE AUDIENCE IS A BIG RESPONSIBILITY OKAY *paniiiiiiiiiics*_


	19. Chapter 18

_Pokémon: 18 Deaths: 1_

It was growing dark by the time Saylee returned to Olivine.

"C'mon, let's be gettin' back t' the lighthouse and seein' if the others are bein' back yet!" Chip said excitedly. "We can be introducin' Diana t'them, an' showin' them Georgia!"

"I'll put you guys away for now," Saylee said, getting their pokéballs out. "It'll make people less twitchy, and Diana won't fit in the elevator anyway. Neither will Georgia now, come to think of it."

Lily's room was much the same as it had been the previous day, only much darker. The sun had set completely by the time Saylee stepped into the mirror maze. She felt more comfortable feeling her way through in the dark than being able to see her endless images. When a small amount of light filtered through her closed eyes, she opened them again to see Jasmine still sitting by Lily's side, nursing the sick Ampharos.

"Oh," Saylee said, feeling guilty at the way that Jasmine's face lit up when she saw her. "I'm sorry, I don't have the medicine. Some of my Pokémon went to Cianwood to get it…"

"Oh… I guess that's better for avoiding Lugia's anger," Jasmine said sadly. "It's okay. Lily's strong. She can hold out."

But Lily didn't look like she could hold out. Her skin was so pale as to nearly be white all over, and her breathing was laboured. Saylee clutched Diana's pokéball, thinking that the dragon could probably fly across the sea. The others should have been back by now…

"I'll go look for them," Saylee said, negotiating her way back out of the maze of mirrors.

The elevator button lit up before she even touched it. Saylee breathed a sigh of relief and stepped back.

"We've got it!" shouted an Ampharos as she ran out of the lift, waving a small blue bottle. She was followed by Tobias, carrying an armful of pokéballs, and a rather damp Nider.

"_Mary_?" Saylee gasped, staring at the tall yellow Pokémon as she disappeared into the mirrors.

"She evolved! Isn't it great?" Tobias said excitedly, handing the pokéballs back to Saylee and giving her a hug. "Hey, did you see Silver?"

"Silver? He was here?" Saylee said, slapping herself on the forehead. "I only got back just now…"

"Oh… he left Cianwood ages before we did," Tobias said, looking crestfallen. "He's probably way away by now."

"What was he doing there?" Saylee asked, kicking herself for missing the kid so closely once again.

"Well, he stole a guy's Pokémon," Nider said, "then had some kind of weird meeting with Suicune, then she—the kid seems to think it's a her, I dunno—ran away when that weird Eusine guy showed up, then Silver kicked his _ass,_ and they both went off in different directions. Does any of that make any sense to anybody?"

"Not quite yet," Saylee said, heading back through the mirrors to sit next to Jasmine while she fed the medicine to Lily. Lily visibly recovered quickly—colour was returning to her skin and a spark to her tail even before Saylee, Nider and Tobias reached the middle of the mirrors. Once the vial was drained, she opened her eyes and sat up.

"Maw!" Mary said happily, hugging her. "You ought tae rest mair. You only got better the now!"

"I'm feelin' plenty braw, dear," Lily said, nuzzling her daughter's head and standing up. Though Mary was an Ampharos now, her mother was quite a bit taller than her. Unlike humans, Pokémon never really stopped growing as they got older and stronger, and Lily was clearly strong for an Ampharos. She brightened her tail glow, and everyone flung their hands over their eyes as the room filled with light. Peeking through her fingers, Saylee could see mirror after mirror reflecting the bright light around the room and out across the sea.

"It's so _pretty_," Tobias gasped.

"Maw's the best, in't she?" Mary said proudly. "This light can be seen aw the way in Cianwood!"

"I'm so glad," Jasmine sighed in relief.

"It was toxic waste getting into the water," Saylee told her. "Trace amounts, but enough to make people ill once they'd drunk enough. I'm guessing the people who didn't catch it are fond of Pecha leaf tea? I met one woman who was… anyway, the Trainer Tower builders are responsible. Though they didn't do it on purpose, they _will_ be taking responsibility for it."

"The water?" Jasmine said in surprise. "Oh… I-I didn't realize… the water from the river's always been so clean, I never thought…"

"The more you know," Saylee sigh. "Still… I saw Suicune down the river. I think it's been purified…"

"That is wonderful," Jasmine said with a smile. "But the matter of the Trainer Tower must still be dealt with to ensure that this trouble does not arise again… I will see to that first thing in the morning. Afterwards…" she twisted her hands nervously. "Would you, um… care to have a battle with me?"

"A battle?" Saylee said in surprise. "You're a trainer?"

"Yes, if you please," Jasmine said shyly. "Your Pokémon, um, seem very well-trained. I, well, I don't often face an, um, sincere challenge. My, um, my Pokémon are really rather strong. If Lily hadn't needed constant care and, um, protection, I promise I would have gone to , um, to deal with the matter myself…" she bowed. "I am very sorry that that duty fell to you today… I shall handle it myself in, um, the future…"

"Uh, sure," Saylee said, though she was having trouble picturing the wispy girl handling the stubborn foreman. She wondered what kind of Pokémon Jasmine used.

"How about tomorrow afternoon, after I return from the construction site?" Jasmine suggested. She politely stifled a yawn with the back of her hand.

"You been sittin' up wi' me fer _ages_, Jaz," Lily said, giving her a hug. "Away an' get yersel' some shuteye. Got tae keep sharp tae keep Olly an' they two on their toes!"

"I'm gaunnae stay here the night, Lee," Mary said. "I'd like tae spend some time wi' Maw, if that's awright."

"Aye, 'mon an' keep me up wi' stories about yer adventures!" Lily said. "I want tae hear aw about your pals here!"

"Let's, um, go and give them some mother-daughter time, shall we?" Jasmine suggested. Saylee nodded and returned Nider.

"Night, guys," Mary called.

"Good night, Mary!" Tobias said before he was returned.

"See you tomorrow, you two," Saylee said, following Jasmine out of the maze.

{}

Tobias and Chip were very welcoming to Diana, and Nider, while snarky, seemed pleased to meet the beautiful dragon. Georgia, however, just gave her a wave and then stepped out into the hostel's empty back garden. Saylee followed her out and saw her walking around and around, stretching her arms and stamping her feet.

Saylee could tell that Georgia was tense, as she had been back in Goldenrod. Saylee didn't say a word but simply sat down and waited for her to speak.

Finally, grudgingly, bitterly, Georgia said, "you replaced 'er."

"Wendy's irreplaceable," Saylee said. "I didn't really mean to wind up with Diana, but a dragon's life debt is legendarily serious business. They say that it's one of the only ways to train them, since their respect is extremely difficult to earn." She sighed. "They're not the only ones, I guess."

"Oi do loike you, Lee," Georgia said. "You loike us an' you're good to us an' folk in general. But you loi, an' when… when Wendy…" her voice broke a little. "Sure, you mourned, an' then you were done with it an' moved on, loike nothin' were really wrong."

"I cried, a long time ago," Saylee said. "I curled up and didn't speak. I prayed for the world to stop. But it never did, Georgia, no matter how much I wanted it to." She reached out and put her hand on Georgia's upper-left arm. It was solid stone but as warm as living flesh. "It hasn't stopped now, either, and won't turn back. I had to learn and accept that a long time ago. I learned to deal with death by making it mean something."

"What'd Wendy's death mean then, eh?" Georgia asked forlornly. "What'd she doi for?"

"You could say that she died because people were sick and scared," Saylee said. "You could say that it was because the foreman is a tight-arsed bastard. And then you want to rain fire and blood on him because he _deserves_ it, because that's an _awful_ thing to die for." She took a deep breath. "I've seen friends die for revenge. It doesn't work. Doesn't put you in the right, it just puts you down in the wrong with whoever you're revenging on. Wendy was very proper, she wouldn't like it." She smiled wanly as she patted Georgia's arm again.

"…Oi think _oi'd_ loike it," Georgia said sullenly.

"Not for long. Besides, the people here weren't scared and violent because of the construction site. They were scared because of the scum that came to pick them off when they were weak."

"Team Rocket." Georgia cracked all of her knuckles, a long and noisy process. "Lee… oi know you got your old Pokémon, all trained an' tough t'foight Team Rocket, but oi still want in."

"We're going after them for the sake of all of the innocent people and Pokémon that they're going to hurt," Saylee said. "Revenge for the ones that they _have_ is a pleasant bonus, but not the object."

"That how you see it, moi love?" Georgia asked. Saylee took the return of the endearment as a good sign.

"The intent probably doesn't make any difference… I'm still going to take them down either way," Saylee said with a shrug. "But thinking that way helps me feel that I'm in the right."

"You know what oi think, moi love?" Georgia said. "Oi think you thinks too much."

"Probably," Saylee laughed. "Hey, I read something interesting about Graveller, and I wonder if you want to try it out…"

{}

"I never been meetin' a dragon before," Chip said, bowing his head to Diana.

"Thought you guys were just legends," Nider said, winking. "No problem whatsoever with you bein' real, though."

"It'll be fun having her with us, won't it?" Chip said. Nider and Tobias nodded.

"You have mine gratitude most sincere for your warm and effusive welcome," Diana said smoothly, bowing her head to them. "Though I perceive that something doth trouble the shining fey?"

"…Toby?" Chip ventured after a moment.

"Me?" Tobias said in surprise. "Oh! I'm sorry, Diana, it's not you. I just… I'm going to miss Mary…"

"Why? She goin' somewhere?" Nider asked.

"She joined up 'cause she wanted to get strong enough to be a lighthouse keeper like her mum," Tobias said forlornly. "And we were coming here anyways to look into rumours about Rockets. Now we're here, and she's strong…"

"In seeking only to match our parents, we do ourselves most grievous wrong." Diana said thoughtfully. "Such a low target is worth but naught. Is it not the great strive of life since life began to exceed itself in all things? It is to surpass the best in ourselves for which we must strike."

"...So does that mean she's comin' or goin'?" Nider wanted to know.

"It means we'll be findin' out when we're seein' Mary tomorrow," Chip replied. He spotted Diana curiously nudging Saylee's dreamcatcher. "Careful! Her's proper fond of that…"

"A weave of tokens of the dead and foreign powers most queer," Diana mused. "Such a strange human is Lady Lyra to sleep sound as a newhatched Abra under a force so primeval. Even to mine eyes…" she nudged the bag containing two gem fragments. "'Tis old, and mighty as the mountains and seas. What might be the nature of such a thing?"

"You'd have to be askin' Lee," Chip said, glancing out of the window where he could see Georgia and Saylee talking about something. "Her's never telt us."

"She doesn't know," Tobias said, peering at the little bag. "I was just a newhatched, but I remember when she got them. Team Rocket tried to steal them because they were powerful, but what kind of power… they kind of cancel each other out when they're together," he said thoughtfully. "On their own, the blue one makes water Pokémon funny and the red one—well, Chaz, he's a Charizard, he said he heard something from it…"

"Ancient powers, and not of this land," Diana mused. "A great many dragons do live in mine homeland, as 'tis a place of great power, yet I did leave to seek strengths not to be found there. Already it seems that there are strange things to be found. No doubt I will do well among mine new allies." She bowed her head to them. "I say once again, well met and blessings upon all, for we have much to share and to learn. It shall be a pleasure."

"I'm sure it will," Nider chuckled.

{}

Jasmine, to Saylee's surprise, lived inside of the huge forge and metalworks at one end of the docks. The skeleton of a half-constructed ship sat inside, but there were no construction workers around. They were probably nursing sick families or sick themselves. Suicune had purified the water and no new filth was going into it, but it would still take a while for the toxin to get out of everyone's systems.

The only sign of life was a figure in a wispy dress, steel mask and heavy gloves welding hull parts together on the side of the ship. It was a surreal sight; the mask alone looked like it weighed more than she did. "How did you stay healthy, Jasmine?" Saylee asked. "Are you secretly made of steel or something?"

"Oh, nothing like that," Jasmine said in a muffled voice, setting down the welding torch. She carefully lifted off the mask and set it on the floor. "You were right on about the pecha tea… I'm addicted to it myself. I thought the bathroom was starting to smell a little funny, but I supposed that mould was growing somewhere… nobody suspected the water…" the gloves hit the floor next to the mask.

"Well, the more you know…" Saylee looked around. Without the construction workers, the place actually had a lot of empty space. "Do you battle here a lot?"

"Oh, yes," Jasmine said shyly, reaching up and taking off the hairnet that she'd tucked her long brown hair into. "We'll have to move a little farther away from the ship, of course… don't want to damage it…" she bowed her head to shake her hair out and then snapped her head up, flicking her hair over her shoulder. There was a sharp, sudden change in her demeanour; all shyness was gone as she looked Saylee in the eye and grinned confidently.

"Shall we?" she said, raising her first pokéball and giving it a little kiss before flinging it across the room to a large area of clear floor space.

It was a Magnemite. Jasmine ran over and jumped up to stand on a girder that was lying on the ground behind it, sweeping her arm to indicate the battle space, a large expanse of empty metal floor with a few marks painted on it. It was likely usually used for storage, or maybe a workspace for the builders and smiths who usually worked there. Saylee moved to the appropriate facing position and released Georgia.

"Alroight, moy love, what've we got 'ere?" Georgia said, rolling her arms. "Pfft! Just a 'moite!"

"Rock Throw," Saylee ordered.

"Supersonic!" Jasmine countered. Her Magnemite began to buzz, but Georgia and her Quick Claw were faster. The first rock she threw smashed the Magnemite to the ground before it could do a thing.

"Oh dear," Jasmine said, returning her Magnemite. "Poor Mac. We shall have to see to a change in tactics. Mic, dodge it!"

"Rock throw again!" Saylee ordered the second Jasmine flung out her second pokéball. The second Magnemite ought to have gone the way of the first, but it zipped out of the way impossibly fast. There was a _clang_ as it stuck to a pile of scrap metal and then detached itself. Georgia attacked again, throwing rocks from both of her upper arms—she wasn't entirely used to having four at her disposal yet—but again Mic vanished. There was a distant _clang_ as it hit the ceiling.

"I don't know what she's building up to, but let's not wait and see," Saylee muttered. "If only we could hit it…"

Georgia hefted another rock. "Oi'm quoite good at calculatin' trajectories, moy love." She raised the rock and aimed it at Mic, who began to dodge towards the anvil. The rock hit him halfway there. "Took me a minute t'get t'speed, roight enough."

"It looks like she's an electric trainer, so this'll be a piece of cake," Saylee said encouragingly.

"Y'know, this is fun," Jasmine said, returning Mic. "I'm glad you're good. I always love the next bit. You think you know what we're all about, don't you?"

Saylee shrugged noncommittally, although Jasmine's grin was unsettling. "You're pretty changeable."

"Oooh, I can't stand the suspense anymore!" Jasmine said, flinging her last pokéball into the air. "Time for you to meet my Olly!"

At first, Saylee took the huge shape that was forming to be an unusually large Onix. Then the rematerialization light faded and she saw the gleam of steel.

"Okay, what the _hell_ is that?" Saylee asked, clicking open her Pokédex. All that came up was a name: _Steelix_.

"I'm the first person to really study Steelix," Jasmine said proudly, running a hand over Olly's side. "They're very rarely seen, but I'll be able to publish the first proper study on how they form and how they live very soon. I met Olly on a dig for ore, you see. He was _very_ deep down."

"Is he an evolved Onix?" Saylee asked, staring in awe at the huge creature.

"I was an Onix once, long ago," Olly rumbled. "The pressures of deepest earth made me hard, strong. I grew strong long ago…"

"He's over a hundred years old, I believe," Jasmine said, "and _very_ strong indeed. Your boulders won't even chip his steel hide! Iron tail, Olly!"

Olly was deceptively quick for his size. Georgia barely rolled out of the way of the descending tail. The entire room shook.

"Georgia!" Saylee shouted. "Your new move! Power it up with the forge! It'll be the only way to hurt him!"

"Oi see!" Georgia jumped up onto Olly's tail and made a sound like clicking her tongue. A spark jumped out and became a stream of fire. Olly roared in pain as the flamethrower hit.

"Fine _flames_, little pebble," he growled, flicking Georgia away with his tail, "but too weak!"

"Oi thought so," Georgia said, pulling herself up by the anvil. "Only learnt it yesterday, din't oi? So oi think oi'll troi this." She reached out with two hands and grabbed fistfuls of coals, shoving them into her mouth and chewing them as if they were handfuls of sweets. Embers dripped from her mouth as she opened it and made the same clicking sound, sending out a much larger blast of fire than before and burning Olly much worse.

"Not… enough!" Olly growled triumphantly, slamming his tail down on Georgia. She caught it with all four arms, shakily holding it up inches above her head. It turned into a test of strength, both shaking as Olly's tail pressed down on Georgia. They stayed that way for several long minutes.

Olly suddenly shuddered and roared weakly. Then collapsed, falling still onto the ground.

"Olly!" Jasmine shouted, running over to his head, stroking him and peering at his eyes. Then she ran down his body until she found the source of his pain.

"You burned him," she said in surprise. "It must have been the first attack… so that did the trick after all, hmm?"

"Brilliant, Georgia!" Saylee said, running over to her. "Well done. And we'll work on that Flamethrower. For its first combat use, it worked really well, didn't it?"

"Oi think you moight loike foire a bit too much, moy love," Georgia said dryly.

Olly vanished as Jasmine returned him. "That was very well fought," she said shyly. "It was a lot of fun… thank you." She bowed politely, quiet and demure again.

"You're a very different person when you battle," Saylee noted. "A lot… less quiet."

"Oh," Jasmine said, blushing. "I feel much more confident with my Pokémon, especially Olly... doesn't it make you happy, to be with your Pokémon?"

"More than anything in the world," Saylee said, smiling at Georgia.

{}

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_That awesome moment where you realize that Graveller can learn Flamethrower. _

_Also, fair warning now; the draft for this is currently at 65 chapters and counting. Cower, brief mortals._


	20. Chapter 19

_Pokémon: 18 Deaths: 1_

"Stayin' here?" Mary laughed. "Aye, right!" Tobias hugged her happily.

"I'm so glad you're staying!" he said brightly. "I would've really really _really_ missed you…" he blushed and _eeped_ when Mary gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Are you sure?" Saylee asked. "I thought you wanted to come work with your mother…"

"Naw," Mary said, shaking her head and gazing back up at the lighthouse. "Maw's fine noo, an' even evolved I'm no' half as braw as she is. So I'm gaunnae stick wi' yous for now. 'Sides…" her tail glowed red. "Those Rocket bastarts came after ma maw when she wis weak. That's no gaunnae fly. I'm gaunnae batter 'em, if you'll let me. An' if you winnae, I'll go aff on my ain an' dae it."

Saylee gave her a hug. "No need for that, Mary," she said. "We'll take out Team Rocket together. There's still one lead we haven't checked out."

"Where's that?" Mary asked.

"I think it's well past time," Saylee said, bringing up her pokégear map, "that we investigate the unusual Pokémon behaviour at the Lake of Rage."

{}

"So that's Mt Mortar, huh?" Nider said as they swam past the high mountain. It wasn't much compared to the mountain range between Johto and Kanto, but it still loomed imposingly over them. Green trees covered most of the sides, but barren rock rose out above them at the mountain's peak.

. Saylee and Mary were sitting on Nider's back, Saylee navigating and Mary zapping any challenging water Pokémon. Saylee had taken interest in an unusually-coloured Goldeen, but Mary had zapped it before Saylee could stop her. Tobias was flying at Saylee's shoulder just because. "Just looks like a big chunk of rock," Nider continued.

"I'm just glad we don't have to go _through_ it to get to Mahogany," Saylee said, glancing up at the sun. "Tell you what, we haven't had lunch yet, so how about we stop at that grove over there?" she pointed to a spot on an island just ahead of them.

"Good times," Mary said, zapping another Goldeen lazily. "I'm _starved_."

"Me too…" Tobias said. He trailed off into a frown and then looked around sharply. "Lee, look!"

Saylee turned to see Suicune bound past, running across the water like it was earth. Just as before, wherever its paws touched the water, the surface shimmered like crystal.

It actually paused for a moment, sniffing at them before bounding away again. It was gone as quickly as it appeared.

"There she goes! Majestic, is she not?"

"Eusine!" Saylee called, spotting the flamboyant man floating down towards the same berry grove as them with his Jumpluff. "I didn't expect to see you here. How are you?"

"Enchanted. Enthralled!" Eusine sang. "Oh, what a sight! Well worth leaving Ecruteak for!"

"You were in Cianwood too!" Tobias recalled.

"Aye, where you got yer arse handed tae ye by Silver!" Mary chuckled.

"Do not remind me!" Eusine wailed. "Such humiliation in front of my beloved Suicune—!"

"Why are you so obsessed with Suicune, Eusine?" Saylee said as they set foot on the island. She released the rest of her Pokémon. "Lunchtime, guys!"

"Hi, Eusine!" Chip said, waving.

"Good to see you all!" Eusine said, inclining his head to Diana. "A Dragonair! What an honour for you, Saylee. Though the greatest honour, for me, would be to gain Suicune's favour…"

"Why Suicune in particular?" Saylee asked. "Aren't Entei and Suicune her equals?"

"I would hardly say so," Eusine sniffed. "I grew up with my grandfather telling me the legends of Johto. Each of the Beasts is said to have a particular power over nature. Entei can cause the eruption of volcanoes. Raikou can call down thunderstorms. Suicune alone has a power that is not destructive. You have seen it yourself just now."

Saylee nodded, remembering Suicune running down the polluted river and making it shine. "She can purify water," she said.

"Precisely!" Eusine said. "Is it not beautiful? Such a pure power! By the barest touch, by its very _existence_, Suicune makes the world a better place! That is why, since I was very young, I have longed to meet Suicune. In seeking to study it, I travelled to read the Bell Tower scriptures in Ecruteak… though I must confess, at this point my mission was somewhat distracted."

"That's when you and Morty met, wasn't it?" Saylee asked.

Eusine nodded. "Indeed. He was the star of the Order, studying and training to become the avatar of Ho-oh. The two of us could talk for hours and hours about the beauty of mythological Pokémon… we were best friends in no time, and…" he frowned at some memory. "Monks of the Bell order are forbidden to enter into relationships, however. I offered to leave Ecruteak, but Morty left the order and opened his dojo, so I stayed. I have travelled on and off in search of Suicune, but Ecruteak is my home now."

"That's sweet, that is," Georgia, munching on some rocks she'd dug up.

"So how long have you two been together?" Saylee asked, unpacking food for the rest of her Pokémon.

"Ten years now… since we were nineteen," Eusine said, smiling. Then he sighed. "And I know that every day, he has wondered if leaving the Order has damaged his chances of becoming Ho-oh's avatar, which has been his heart's desire since he was a young child."

"But he still left," Tobias pointed out, accepting a bag of his favourite berries from Saylee.

"That he did," Eusine said with a smile. "I am amazed and grateful for that every day. Besides, the scriptures do not specify a monk, merely a 'chosen vessel', and there are none worthier of that than Morty. In any case, once one has been chosen, can one be un-chosen?"

"What exactly do you mean by 'Ho-oh's avatar', anyway?" Saylee asked. "What is that?"

"Did you read any of the Bell Tower scriptures?" Morty asked.

Saylee shook her head. "I glanced at them but didn't really have time to stop and read," she sighed. "I would love to sit and read them, though. I bet they're fascinating!"

"They are," Eusine agreed. "There are many predictions written centuries ago by an ancestor of Morty's, a mad psychic whose mind became unhinged in time. He saw the past and future but, alas, very rarely the present." He chuckled. "His wife, who ought to be the goddess of patience and devotion if she isn't already, transcribed and translated his ramblings into histories and prophecies; although there are many that are unclear as to which they are. The dubious gift has remained but weakened over time. Morty has some control over it, as you saw when he predicted where you would find your elder brother."

"So what's this avatar stuff bein' about?" Chip asked between mouthfuls of his lunch. "You haven't been explainin' that yet."

"One of the prophecies is about the fate of the gods," Eusine explained. "Ultimately, for the world to exist in harmony, the societies of humans and Pokémon must truly merge. The gods—Lugia, Ho-oh, Celebi and so on—must merge with humans. Their consciousness and the human's will become one. The human is said to gain memories, powers, and a long life—though not immortality. These humans have come to be referred to as 'avatars', and they will become leaders of humans and Pokémon alike. Morty's father predicted that this will begin within our lifetime."

"Uniting humans and Pokémon once and for all?" Tobias asked excitedly.

"That sounds wonderful," Saylee said happily. "Although, humans and Pokémon merging…"

"Pokémon and humans becoming able to communicate is said to be the first sign," Eusine said excitedly. "Of course, it has been more than fifteen years since, but the lifetimes of gods are measured in millennia, so to them that is no time at all…" He stood up. "You have my thanks for sharing in your lunch," he said, taking Saylee's hand and kissing it. "I warn you that Mahogany is still two days' travel away. There is another isle, similar to this, about four hours away that will serve you well as a campsite."

"Are you going to camp?" Saylee asked.

Eusine shook his head. "We have tarried too long in our chase of Suicune, have we not, Jericho?" he said.

"We are not averse to flying through the night, if needs be," Jericho said, holding out his leg for Eusine to grip onto. "Farewell, all!"

The pair of them drifted away. Saylee looked up at the sky again. It would be good to keep going for more than four hours, but it was starting to get dark earlier, and when it was , it was _freezing_. It was cold enough during the day, and Mary was shivering a little, no doubt missing her warm wool.

"Alright, time to move on," she said, getting up and grabbing her bag. "Let's get a move on so we can make camp before sunset."

{}

By the time they'd finished dinner, the sun had already set. Saylee shivered, hugging Chip.

"I'll put everyone else in your pokéballs," she said. "It'll be too cold for the rest of you."

"Oi dunno, moy love, oi feel quoite perky meself," Georgia said with a complex shrug. "Kinda loikin' t'cold. D'you moind if'n oi stay up, moy love? Somebody ought t'stand guard out here. Plenty o' bad sorts out around 'ere."

"That'd be great, Georgia, thank you," Saylee said, snuggling into her sleeping bag. Chip banked his fires and curled up next to her. Saylee reached up to hang her dreamcatcher on a tree branch and set her glasses onto her bag before settling back down to sleep.

"Lee?" Chip asked. "Them two stones that be hangin' in a bag there—Toby said you ain't been findin' what they are, an' Diana was sayin' that they be powerful."

"I suppose," Saylee said, staring vaguely at where she thought the bag was. She wasn't reaching back out of her sleeping bag for her glasses now that she was so warm. "They were both found in caves in the Sevii Islands. I should have put them back… but by the time I'd realized that I'd taken them, I was far away."

"Maybe they din't want t'go back t'cave," Georgia said. "They in't proper stones, oi can tell that from 'ere."

"Probably not," Saylee agreed. "What they _are_, though… goodness knows."

"Would you be doin' it, Lee?" Chip asked sleepily. "Would you be an avatar, like what Eusine was talkin' 'bout? If you could?"

"I don't know that I'd want that kind of responsibility," Saylee said uncomfortably.

"Bit odd, comin' from you," Georgia laughed. "The girl who's runnin' 'cross continents after Team Rocket!"

"That just kind of fell on me, and that's stressful enough," Saylee sighed. "So was providing for Pallet, back when we were isolated. Looking after one village is more responsibility than I ever really wanted, so whole _races_…"

"So what are you wantin', Lee?" Chip asked.

"I want to find my brother," Saylee said, staring up at the stars. "That was the whole reason… I want to find Red…"

"You'll be findin' 'im when it's startin' to snow, right?" Chip asked. "That's what Morty was sayin'."

Saylee nodded. "I hope it starts to snow soon," she said wistfully.

{}

"That is _really_ startin' to piss me off," Nider growled as they carefully walked down the sloping path to Mahogany.

"Aye, it's doin' ma heid in too," Mary agreed.

"What is?" Saylee asked. All of them looked at her incredulously.

"My lady, can'st be possible that you fail to perceive the atrocity that doth assault our ears?" Diana asked, massaging her forehead with the tip of her tail. "It is as poison applied to the head, a horn drill to the brain, a sound made of all things pain and irritation…"

"It's a bloody nuisance, moy love," Georgia grumbled, "an' it's getting' painful."

"Lee, it's like the noise in the warehouse," Tobias murmured, sounding upset. "The one from when I was little. The noise that hurt…"

"That signal!" Saylee gasped, smacking herself in the forehead. "That makes it certain! Team Rocket is here! I'm so sorry, you guys," she said, turning around. "We'll go back to somewhere where it doesn't hurt. I'll send a note back home saying that we've found them."

"My lady," Diana said, staring at the sky, "this assemblage of Rockets, be they capable of whipping unto a frenzy the clouds and winds?"

"Creating storms? I don't know," Saylee said, jogging along the path. "Let me know when it sounds okay again, guys."

"We can be handlin' it fine," Chip said, nudging his head into her side. "You can be sendin' off the letter."

"Thanks," Saylee said, pulling a pad of paper and a pen out of her bag and dashing off a quick note. "If Team Rocket has Pokémon capable of creating storms, I haven't…" she paused in the middle of folding up the note and looked up at the light grey sky. "Out of curiosity, why do you ask?"

"There brews ahead a storm of great might and fury," Diana said solemnly. "Great care we must take in hoping to proceed. It is not a storm born of Mother Nature's capricious whim."

"Right." Saylee opened her Pokédex and placed the piece of paper onto the portpad. She clicked the button to the "Pallet" setting and sent the note away. "Now, to my knowledge, only Nider, Mary and Tobias are fully evolved. Chip, Georgia and Diana will all be hurt much worse by this signal. I'm going to put you all away for now, okay?"

"'Kay," Chip muttered, rubbing his forehead. He had grown very large, large enough that his head could reach the small of her back. Saylee had noticed the previous night that the fire crest on his back was dying down, leaving only the ones on his head and neck. He was not too far from becoming a Typhlosion, which put him at great risk of being pushed into a premature evolution by prolonged exposure to the radio signal.

Saylee could clearly remember the tortured warehouse Pokémon. Most of those who had evolved early were deformed, their bodies not taking on their new forms properly, or sickly and incapable of controlling their new power. Some had died, their bodies destroyed by ill-timed evolution. Saylee would _not_ let her Pokémon go through that.

Her Pokédex _beeped_. One after another, three pokéballs rolled out. The first was a scuffed, faded pokéball with a flame insignia etched in. The second was a dented old ball with much of the colour scraped and burned off. The third was a blue-and-red great ball.

"I'll introduce you all later," Saylee said, hugging the pokéballs to her chest. Tobias touched his parents' pokéballs reverently, a smile lighting up his face.

{}

"Cmon, Pete," Blue said, unhooking his flight harness from the wall. "Let's move out."

"Blue, what do you think you're doing?" his grandfather demanded. "It took Saylee five days' travel through those caves, with sufficient planning and supplies—"

"I'm not using the caves," Blue said, grabbing his haversack. "I'll follow the rail line. If we follow that, it's a straight flight through the mountains, probably not more than a day or two. We'll be able to find Saylee inside of three days. Besides, Pete's _way_ faster than Chaz." Pete preened as his trainer climbed onto his back.

"Blue, it's nearly winter, those mountains will be dangerous," Daisy pleaded. "Besides, three days is more than enough time for Saylee to trounce Team Rocket!"

"It's bigger than she realizes," Blue insisted, pulling a photograph out of his pocket and glaring at it before moving it to a more secure pocket. "Plus, she needs to know what I found while cleaning out Giovanni's place."

"We can send her the blueprints later…" his grandfather began, trailing off at Blue's glare.

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it," he said.

"We only know that you only told Auntie Johanna what upset you so much, and it upset her too," Daisy said. "Can't you tell _us_?"

"Not my place to," Blue said curtly. "Saylee needs to know first. Ask Auntie Jo if you really have to know. Now stop worrying. I'll be fine, and you'll be fine too. That foreign guy's a good trainer even if his Pokémon are bizarre. Let's go, Pete!" Daisy and her grandfather stepped back as Pete spread his expansive wings and took off.

"Do you have any idea what this could be about?" Daisy asked her grandfather.

"Whatever it is, it must be very personal to Saylee and her mother," her grandfather sighed. "And that, sadly, means that your brother's right; it's up to them to decide when to share whatever it is."

"But Blue knows," Daisy pointed out.

"Yes, and he's still talented at keeping secrets," the Professor said, returning to his lab. "Can you come give me a hand with sifting through these rubble piles, Daisy? Try to find bone fragments…"

{}

{}

_This chapter being the first moment where I realized that in the games Eusine doesn't own a Jumpluff and I've been reading the Pokémon Adventures manga too much. I'm still keeping Jericho in. _

_Also, that terrible, terrible moment where you crit-hit a shiny T_T I tried using Cut but it was still too much. Goldeeeeen! T_T_

_Name: Marty. Species: Machop. Nature: Calm. Ability: No Guard. Level: 14_


	21. Chapter 20

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 1_

It started raining as Saylee drew closer to Mahogany, and very soon it was bucketing. Freezing rain, wind and tiny bits of hail pelted down on her, not hard enough to really hurt her but hard enough to sting. She'd stopped twice under trees to don extra jumpers and a pair of jeans and pull her hat as low over her face as possible, and had stopped a third time to look for something else to wear when she spotted a light. From its square shape, it looked like it was shining out of a window.

She made her way towards it, more cautiously now, and caught sight of the lights of more houses. The wind died down slightly once she was among the houses, but the rain was still heavy and freezing. Most of the houses had heavily shuttered windows. Saylee went through several streets without seeing a human or a Pokémon. She rounded a corner into a more open space and the wind blew in her face, carrying with it a babble of voices.

"We have to leave!"

"The rain won't stop!"

"Mahogany's going to be destroyed at this rate!"

"Everybody calm down!" A nasally voice called. Saylee crept around a house, using the front garden wall as a windbreak, and peered at the gathering huddled under an awning stretched between two buildings. There were a couple of men in thick coats and hoods at either end of the awning, struggling to hold the tough blue canvas in place as the wind tried to whip it away.

The nasally voice belonged to a man in a brown suit with slicked-back, bright purple hair. "The rain will die down soon!" he called. "Go back to your homes!"

"It will be alright." Another man had stepped up next to the purple-haired one, much taller with a long blue coat and pure white hair. He didn't shout; his voice was powerful enough to carry through the gale. "Go home, cover up your windows, and keep calm."

"Listen to your elders!" the purple-haired man cackled. The old man gave him a filthy look. People began to scatter as lighting flashed. In the light, Saylee realized where she had seen that frankly offensive shade of purple before.

_A purple-haired man scrambled up the ladder to the balloon while Proton set the self-destruct…_

The old man muttered something to the Rocket Executive, glaring daggers at the man before turning and stalking through the large gateway behind him. The Executive scurried off into another building. As soon as he was gone, the two men let go of the awning and followed. The townspeople dispersed more rapidly with the main source of cover gone.

"Psst," Saylee whispered, grabbing the arm of a man who ran past. "Secret police, it's okay." The man looked sceptically at her. She pulled open her coat, which she'd put on over her bag to protect it, and his gaze was drawn to the badges and pins on her bag strap. He must have recognized some of the Johto emblems, because he nodded to her, indicating that she could continue. "Who's that purple-haired guy?" she asked quickly. The man was skittish, looking around nervously.

"Name's Petrel," the man murmured. "He's running the souvenir store all of a sudden. Graeme Pryce, Sir Pryce's eldest son, he used to run the place, but nobody's seen him or his family in a while, or Helen Pryce. A few other people are missing too… I'd better not be seen talking to you." Saylee let go of his arm and he ran off.

_Team Rocket is here,_ Saylee thought, gripping Chaz's pokéball in her pocket. _And from the sound of it, they have hostages…_

{}

"Brrr!" Saylee gasped, stepping into the gatehouse, which was decorated in light blue and mostly empty aside from a counter, a couple of sofas and a blank television screen set into one wall. She took off her soaking jacket and began to shake it out on the muddy linoleum floor, which wouldn't help much given how soaked her jumper was. Her hat dropped over her eyes, dripping water onto her chin.

"Hello there, missy," a man in a dark blue guard's uniform and hat said, stepping out from behind the counter. A similarly-dressed man with no hat that had been leaning against the far wall ambled over as well. "Rough weather, innit?"

"Oh, I know, awful, isn't it?" Saylee babbled, squeezing out her pigtails. "But I just _had_ to see the lake! I hear it's _spectacular_!"

The guards chuckled. "Well, it's a thousand quid to pass, missy," the one with the hat said, holding out his hand. Saylee's face fell as she dug in her pocket.

"Oh, no… I don't have anywhere _near_ that much!" she complained. The hatless "guard" put his hand on her arm.

"Well now, how are you going to pay your passage?" he leered. The smirk abruptly faded as Saylee kicked him in the crotch. At the same moment, she pulled two pokéballs out of her pocket and threw them into the air.

"Why you little—" the still-standing guard snarled, releasing a Raticate. It was struck on the back of the head by a high-velocity bone club.

"A Marowak… and a Hitmonchan…?" the guard on the ground groaned. "No… you're—" he reached for a pokéball, but Hernan punched him out while Carrie's bone club returned to her hand by way of the second guard's head.

"Man, you guys are quick on the uptake," Saylee said happily, pulling off her hat and dropping it onto her jacket. "I missed you two!"

"They're Rockets, it's instinctual," Carrie said, twirling her club.

"We've missed you, too," Hernan said as Saylee hugged them. "How is Toby?"

"He evolved, didn't he?" Carrie said, hugging Saylee back. "Let's see him!"

"Sure thing," Saylee said with a smile, lifting up the bottom of her jumper. She'd hidden her pokéball belt underneath. "C'mon out, Toby!"

"Mum! Dad!" Tobias immediately flew at his parents when he appeared, laughing joyfully. "Look at me! I can _fly_ now! And I've got all these new powers, and—" he winced. "Ow… it's that noise again…"

"Ah… so it is," Hernan said gravely. "I didn't notice… it seems much… less… than before…"

"Maybe it's been refined so it doesn't bother Pokémon over a certain power level," Saylee theorized, "or maybe you've gotten just that much stronger in the five months since the warehouse."

Tobias' face fell. "So I'm not as strong yet?" he said sadly. "I thought, since I'd evolved…"

"Oh, Toby," Carrie said, hugging him gently. "You're very young, and you've got a lot of training ahead of you. But at the end of it…" she kissed his forehead. "You'll be more powerful than the both of us."

While Tobias was showing off his new powers to his parents, Saylee released Chaz. Of her Pokémon that she'd left behind—and there'd been more than twenty of them—she'd missed her Charizard the most, her first and most powerful teammate.

Steam rose off of Saylee as she flung her arms around Chaz's long neck. "You're soaked," Chaz said, gently breathing hot air over her. "What've you gotten into now?"

"Team Rocket's here, as you might be able to hear," Saylee sighed. Chaz cocked his head for a moment, listening intently, and then nodded. "They've got hostages, too, and this storm is unnatural so I'm betting that they're behind it too somehow." She opened the map setting of her pokégear. The phone wouldn't connect, and the radio only played a weird screeching buzz, probably the sound that the Pokémon were suffering. The map worked, at least, and the Lake of Rage was subtitled, "_also known as: Gyarados Lake_".

"Rampaging Gyarados looks about right," Chaz said, looking out of the window nervously. "How do we calm that storm?"

"I've got some ideas…" Saylee looked at Tobias. "Toby, do you think it's okay…?"

"It's… tolerable," Tobias said. "We're going to need Diana, and she's extra-tough anyway."

"I'll take your word for it." Saylee released the rest of her Pokémon. "I didn't intend to pick up a team here, but, well, stuff happens. Chaz, Hernan, Carrie… meet Chip, Georgia, Nider, Mary and Diana!"

Tobias insisted on introducing Mary to everyone personally. Nider hit some kind of alpha-male crisis and started showing off, not shutting up about how they could beat them all blindfolded until Hernan lifted the large Nidoking over his head with one hand. Chip soon utterly hero-worshipped Chaz, a much larger and more powerful fire-type. Georgia, Diana and Carrie were soon chatting about five things at once. Saylee was glad to see Georgia becoming comfortable around Diana; they had serious work ahead of them.

"Lee, oi'm tellin' you now," Georgia said warningly. "Don't you be thinkin' o' sendin' _me_ away now you've got your old team 'round. They're roight strong, sure, but so're we."

"Aye, an' I promised I'd be gien' Team Rocket a good batterin' fer whit they done," Mary growled. "Dinnae even _think_ 'bout leavin' me oot."

"Lee, I know you weren't plannin' t'be bringin' us into this," Chip added, "and you was plannin' not t'have us be fightin' them Rockets, but we're _wantin'_ t'be. They're _evil…_"

"I know," Saylee said, scratching his ear. "But I won't be able to keep you, Georgia and Diana out for long. The signal will hurt too much…"

"T'be honest, moy love, oi ain't hardly felt it 'ere," Georgia said, looking up at Tobias, who was currently sitting on her head. "You been 'earin' it, moy love?"

"A little, but I've been trying to block it out…" Tobias said.

Carrie suddenly hopped up and scooped him into her arms. "Maybe you have," she said, walking away from Georgia. After a few steps, Georgia winced sharply.

"Son o' a slag'eap…" she muttered, rubbing her head. Carrie ran back with Tobias and she relaxed. "Ah, that's much better, moy love."

"Really?" Chip ran over to Georgia and gasped. "Oh, wow! I can barely be hearin' it!"

"Nor I," Diana said, leaning down. "The young fey hath raised upon us a barrier of security. Did he know it not?"

"See?" Hernan proudly said as Tobias looked at his parents in surprise. "You have more power than you know."

"That's brilliant, Toby!" Saylee said happily. "You four need to stay together, then. Toby, Chip, you two'll fit on Georgia's head. Diana, if you stay close by…"

"It won't protect them from the weather," Chaz pointed out, indicating the storm outside that was raging into a full-blown typhoon.

"To quell these winds is nothing more than breath, now that my mind is clear as the waters of Suicune," Diana said. Her horn and the jewels along her body began to glow.

The wind died. The sound of rain became distant. Saylee looked out of the door and saw that, while the storm still raged, they were in the centre of a circle of sunlight.

"That's _amazing_," she breathed.

"Looks like it's a good thing you did pick these guys up," Chaz observed, stepping outside. "Let's go clear up this storm properly so we can _see_ the scum we're taking out."

{}

A flock of newly-evolved Pidgeotto were sheltering and shivering under a tree. Some had evolved fine, and had spread their wings over comrades who were not so lucky. Some of their wings were still Pidgey-sized, too small now to support their weight. Others had half-grown, deformed wings. Almost none of them had a pink Pidgeotto crest, but rather the tiny tuft of brown-and-white feathers that was a mark of childhood to them.

Saylee remembered the pride that Pedro had taken in his pink crest when it had first grown in. If these poor birds could never grow adult crests, their ability to interact with other flocks of Pidgeotto would be damaged for life. Pidgeotto could not—and possibly _would_ not—give them the help they needed.

"This is awful…" Carrie said sadly, watching them sorrowfully but not daring to get close. They'd tried to approach a similar flock earlier, but the birds had been so crazed with pain and fear that they'd attacked violently. The only success they'd had was Mary being able to approach huddled herds of new Flaaffy, many with purple or still-blue skin and heavy, sodden tufts of now extraneous wool. She'd managed to siphon off their excess electricity and reduce some of their pain, but now her own voltage was running too high. She was flushed in the face, as if feverish, and crackled with every step.

"The sooner we deal with this, the better," Saylee said.

"Oh, that reminds me," Chaz said. "Blue's been clearing out the Rocket building in Viridian and found some hidden offices. One of them had some notes about a hidden complex under Mahogany. Supposedly, it used to be an underground ninja fortress, and then something happened to the clan that either drove them away or drove them to live aboveground… I wonder if anyone in Mahogany still knows it's there. Supposedly there's only two entrances, and the notes indicate that one was caved in long ago."

"On the subject of ninja, Koga went up to Indigo Plateau after meeting Lorelei," Carrie added. "He came back alive and then returned with a couple of disciples, young relatives of his I think. Jasmine's the head of Fuchsia now. Koga's been steadily leaking technology and information out of there…"

"Good," Saylee said. "I hope he can keep the psychopaths up there under control. If anyone can, it's probably him." She didn't expect that the stern, unflappable ninja lord would balk even at ghosts and dragons.

"Lorelei didn't seem so bad," Tobias piped up.

"No, that time she was just turning her psychopathy against Team Rocket instead of us," Saylee sighed. "She got way angrier at Team Rocket than she did at me, though. Then again, I never kidnapped and brutally tortured her favourite Pokémon…"

"Lance wondered if that was one of the reasons why she left," Chaz mentioned. "That he killed Lorenzo… not that _he_ seems to feel guilty about it."

"Did you hear about your mother?" Carrie asked Saylee.

Saylee shook her head. "Is she alright?" she asked.

"She misses you," Chaz said, "but… well, I guess she's a little less lonely these days."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Nider wanted to know.

"She's been seeing someone," Carrie said. "The occasional boat comes in and out of Vermillion, and this guy came in on one and went to Pewter to help the tunnelling through Mt Moon. Anyway, you know how your mother's been making some money selling lunch to the workers in Pewter?"

"Yeah, she said that business has been quite good since Viridian Forest got easier to travel through," Saylee said. "Did she meet him there?"

"Yep," Chaz said. "They hit it off really well. I've seen him around. He seems like a good guy. About your mum's age, but a big guy. Pretty strong for a human. He's asked after you, I think. Your mum seems to like him a lot. She had a bout of depression recently and threw away her old wedding ring, and then she's perked right up again."

"She threw the ring away?" Saylee said in surprise. "Wow… she must _really_ like this guy! That's so great for her! What's his name?"

"Um… I can't remember," Chaz admitted. "I haven't really met him."

"What 'bout your da, Lee?" Chip asked.

"Who knows?" Saylee said with a shrug. "I was born just after. Mum woke up with the only things she had in the world being me, Red, the clothes on her back and that ring. She named him Red for his eye colour, we've never really known if he's got a different birth name or even if he's my brother for sure. He doesn't look much like Mum… anyway, obviously Mum can't remember who our father is, and if he's even still alive he won't remember us. Mum wondered about it for years… I'm glad she's given up on it and moved on…"

"My lady," Diana said, "I humbly beg of you your most gracious pardon for my unseemly interruption, but it must be known that we approach now the storm's true eye, a force of rage and might beyond even mine power…"

"Isn't that the lake there?" Hernan said, pointing to the churning water that was almost indistinguishable from the wild rain. Saylee had to watch it for several minutes to be sure that it was indeed the Lake of Rage. It was living right up to its name.

"Right—I'm going to return everyone except Nider, Mary, Tobias and Diana," Saylee said. "Diana, I want to you try and lift Nider and I into the air, keeping us in the circle of clear weather. The odds are good that Gyarados that've been forced to evolve are rampaging in that lake. I feel sorry for them, but we need to knock them out to clear the weather enough for us to search for that transmitter. Mary, ready to use that pent-up electricity?"

"Ooft aye," Mary muttered, her tail sparking sharply. "Just say when."

"I'll call you all out again as soon as the weather's cleared," Saylee promised, returning the rest. "Tobias, stick close to Diana. Diana, please try to get us as high out of the water on the ground as you can."

"Indeed," Diana said, peering into the Lake. "My Lady, it may be of use to know that amongst the churning waters there floats a human of diminutive stature…"

"What?!" Saylee said sharply. "Are you saying that there's a kid in the lake?!" Diana nodded. Saylee climbed carefully onto Nider's back.

"Toby, look after my bag, okay?" She said, slipping Carrie, Hernan and Chaz's loose pokéballs into the satchel and handing it to Tobias. "Nider, we need to get out there and get that kid. Diana, Toby, Mary, stay together and stay safe, got it? We'll need a safe spot to bring whoever the hell it is back to."

"Hang on tight," Nider said, winking at Diana. "Back in a wink. Here we go!"

They charged out into the driving rain.

{}

{}

_Sorry the chapter's a day late… if this is my holiday week, why am I so bloody busy all the time?!_

_I never transferred Hernan, Carrie or Chaz out of my FireRed game; they're only here in the story because I missed the characters and wanted to bring them back :) These three would never pass up a chance to beat on Team Rocket anyway._

_Name: Garett. Species: Girafarig. Nature: Naïve. Ability: Inner Focus. Level: 15_


	22. Chapter 21

_Pokémon: 20 Deaths: 1_

Once outside of Diana's sphere of protection, the cold hit Saylee like a fist, even before Nider dived into the frigid water. She clung tightly to Nider's back as he battled through the wild currents, focusing on not scratching herself on the venomous points of his spines. She hauled herself up to peer over his shoulder, already losing the feeling in her hands as her gloves soaked through. Something hard bounced off of Nider's shoulder and grabbed Saylee's arm.

"A Magneton?!" Saylee yelped in surprise, pressing her glasses to her face to peer at the cold, metallic Pokémon that was clinging to her arm. One of its eyes peered up at her and widened in surprise.

"You! The liar!" it buzzed.

"Liar? You're…" Saylee gasped in realization. "You're Silver's! It's him? Where is he?"

"There!" the Magneton shrieked, pointing one of his magnets towards the middle of the lake.

A wave tossed Silver and Tyra sharply into the air. Tyra caught her trainer and the pair vanished into the water.

"We have to find them and get them out of the water!" Saylee shouted into Nider's ear.

"I'm not goin' down there!" Nider yelled. "There's somethin' big and _nasty_ under there—WHOA!"

It felt as if the wind and water gripped them and flung them high into the air. Saylee tried to grab onto Nider as the sudden crosswinds flung them wildly back and forth, but her numb fingers in sodden gloves couldn't grip. She thought she felt heat on the palm of her hand for an instant, but then she was ripped away, tumbling through the air with the Magneton clinging tightly to her arm. She could see Silver and Tyra also being tossed around in the furious twister. Tyra had her long arms wrapped around her trainer, holding onto him tight. The swirling winds threw them back and forth, the much lighter Saylee and the Magneton being tossed much more violently than the oddly large Tyra. As Saylee scrambled to grab Tyra's tail during another pass, it clicked why the water-type was so much larger than before, her markings and proportions so different. She had evolved again.

"What the hell are you doing here, Liar?!" Silver bellowed, noticing her over Tyra's arm as Saylee finally managed to get a grip on the spines of Tyra's tail. "Don't you _dare_ try to steal my catch! It looks _strong_!" Saylee looked down at the centre of the cyclone. She saw more red, bright and vivid as fresh blood. It was _huge._

She was starting to feel dizzy, probably from too long in the twister, and it took her spinning mind a while to realize that the Pokémon causing the storm was a bright red _Gyarados_.

A beam of ice fired wildly into the cyclone. Saylee looked around to see Nider, also twisting through the air in the tornado above them, using his only long-rage attack to fire on the Gyarados. The winds were strong enough to send the beam off-course, and it took him a few shots to hit. The Gyarados wailed in pain, sending random blasts of blue fire into the twister. One hit Tyra dead-on, knocking Silver out of her arms.

"SILVER!" Saylee shouted, letting go of Tyra and falling into the wind. Her vision was blurring—had her glasses been knocked off? Her face was too numb to feel if they were on or not—but she focused on the small splash of red that was Silver, digging into her pockets for an empty pokéball. She realized that the weight on her arm from the Magneton's grip was gone and hoped that he was alright. She found a rough, heavy apricorn ball and prayed that Kurt's handiwork would be enough. When she heard the Gyarados wail as Nider hit it with another ice beam, she flung the ball into the wind and stared down, squinting at the Gyarados. The huge red shape vanished a moment later, so the pokéball must have hit.

The wind died within moments of the Gyarados disappearing. Nider, Tyra, Silver and Saylee all began to fall.

"Silver!" Saylee shouted, looking up into the air. The small, light Silver had been thrown higher than she had and was falling down towards her. She managed to grab what felt like an arm as they fell towards the water. Saylee couldn't guess how far down it was; her head was still spinning as if she were still in the middle of the typhoon.

She wrapped her arms protectively around Silver just before they hit the water _hard._

{}

"Saylee!" Chaz called, flying over the calming waters. Diana had calmed down the weather, and Tobias had let Chaz out of his pokéball, saying that Saylee and Nider had gone into the storm after a child and hadn't come back even after the weather had calmed.

"Nider!" he shouted, spotting the large purple Pokémon swimming through the water. "Where's Saylee?"

"Dunno," Nider said, holding up her big white hat. "Found this stupid thing, but I can't find her."

"Dammit." Chaz flew higher, scanning the area.

_Pedro would have spotted her by now_, he thought wistfully. He missed his best friend keenly. Pedro had been cocky, but he'd been a good friend and a great warrior, and he could spot a Persian in a blizzard. It stung Chaz that when he'd finally been reunited with his trainer, his _other_ best friend, first he'd been unable to fight alongside of her because of the damn _weather_, and now if she was drowning underwater he'd be unable to reach her…

"Silver! SILVER! Answer me, kiddo!"

Chaz circled down to the figure swimming across the surface of the water. It was some kind of large water-type that he'd never seen before. "'Scuse me," he said, "but have you seen a human female, brown hair, a bit over five feet tall—"

"You mean that Saylee?" the water-type growled. "Dunno. Didn't see any humans under the water, just a load of confused Gyarados flapping around like Magikarp. I'm looking for my trainer, very little human male, bright red hair…"

"How do you know Saylee?" Chaz asked.

"Silver hates her," the water-type snapped. "None of your business why, firebutt. But…" she flicked her tail. "Your Saylee came out into the storm to help Silver. Even though he hates her, she worries about him because he's just a kid. And her Pokémon like her. So I guess she's not that bad. Don't tell Silver I said so, 'specially since she stole his catch." She opened her large jaws to reveal that a large grey-and-blue pokéball was gripped between her back teeth.

"Saylee is one of the best humans there is," Chaz said, firmly flying up into the air and looking around. Then his tail flared as he felt an odd heat signature. It felt like a _volcano,_ but so _small_…

The banks of the river were littered with smashed trees and thrown boulders. Magikarp were splashing amongst the mud, little flickering spots of red trying to hop away from a ring of fire.

Standing inside the circle was a creature like a shaggy brown Arcanine, watching another spot of red which was swearing heavily in a voice far too young for the words it was using.

"— useless, stupid, thieving bitch, why the fuck did you go and do that? Weak, useless, piece of shit—"

Chaz guessed that the little red-haired boy was Silver. He was warming his hands on the ring of fire and distinctly not looking at Saylee. She was lying on her side, unmoving and apparently unconscious. A nervous-looking Magneton was hovering over her, her glasses dangling from one of its magnets.

"Watch your mouth, kid," Chaz said, flapping down next to Saylee and watching the strange Pokémon nervously. He draped one wing protectively over Saylee, surprised to feel that she was bone-dry, rather than soaked and freezing as Chaz would have expected. The strange Pokémon narrowed its eyes at Chaz. Chaz tried to stare it down, but he could _feel_ the raw power emanating from the white-hot creature. "What are _you_?"

"I think she's called Entei, right?" Silver said. Entei bowed its head. "You're Suicune's sister, right? Where's she? And Raikou? I want to see all three of you together! I'd be stronger than _anyone_ with you three!"

Entei shook its head, looking back in the direction of Mahogany. Then she turned and ran, bounding away over the ruined landscape. The ring of fire flickered out moments later.

"Well, fuck you too!" Silver yelled angrily. "No Gyarados, no Beasts… what a stupid waste of a trip…"

"Who taught you manners?" Chaz wanted to know. "Team Rocket?"

Silver glared at Chaz. "You're _him_, aren't you," he said. "The last Charizard."

"As far as I know," Chaz replied. "You're Silver, aren't you? Someone's looking for you."

"Who?" Silver said guardedly. Then he looked out at the lake. "Oh… Tyra?" he released a Golbat. "Go find Tyra and bring her here." The Golbat nodded and flew off. Silver glared at the Magneton that was still floating nervously over Saylee's head. "I wish you'd go in your stupid pokéball."

Chaz tipped his head back and shot a blast of fire as high into the air as he could. He hoped the others would take it as a signal. Then he leaned down and sniffed at Silver and Saylee.

"Hey!" the boy complained. "What the hell are you _doing_, you freak?"

"Calm down, I'm just making sure you're not injured," Chaz said. "I smell blood, though…" he nudged Saylee's cheek. "I don't think humans should feel that hot…"

"Her hand's bleeding," Silver pointed out. Chaz lifted up her left hand and saw that her glove was covered in blood. He carefully pulled it off with his teeth and saw a jagged cut crossed her palm. It was fresh, and had swollen purple. "Ew, that's _disgusting_."

"She's poisoned…" Chaz muttered. "Dammit, where's Toby with that bag?" He signalled again.

"_Watch your mouth_," Silver said mockingly. "Must've cut herself on her stupid Nidoking when she fell off. Idiot. How weak can you _get_? Why the hell was she out there? That Gyarados was _mine _to catch_!"_

"Count yourself lucky she caught _you_," Chaz said sharply. "Toby said you fell from pretty high, high enough that a human as tiny as you would've broken every little bone in your body." He desperately wanted to check if _Saylee_ had broken anything, but he was scared to move her in case she had; she was warm and he was breathing, and he had to take those as good enough signs for the time being. "She saved your life, you ungrateful brat. If you think that's weakness, no wonder that Entei character doesn't want anything to do with you."

"Shut up!" Silver shouted angrily. "I didn't _ask_ her to save me!"

"Chaz! Saylee!"

Tobias came flying up with his parents and Mary in tow. Diana was flying over them, looking around nervously.

"You still owe her," Chaz said, taking Saylee's bag from Tobias. "So dig out an antidote for her. You've got the little hands and opposable thumbs. I think they work alright on humans…"

"Antidote? Is she alright?" Carrie said in alarm.

"She cut her hand on one of Nider's spikes from the looks of it," Chaz explained as Silver sullenly dug for the antidotes. "Then she hit the water pretty hard… though she doesn't seem that badly hurt," he added, a little nonplussed. "I wonder what that _was_… something powerful was here. Entei. It was protecting them with a ring of fire…"

"You're right; she's only dislocated this shoulder," Carrie said, patting Saylee down for broken bones. "Good thing she's unconscious…" Silver winced as Carrie carefully shoved Saylee's arm back into its socket. Saylee whimpered in her sleep but didn't wake. "What _is_ an Entei?"

"It's one of the Legendary Beasts of Johto," Tobias explained. "They're kinda like Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, but not birds."

"What about the Beasts?" Nider said, swimming up and hauling himself onto shore. "Good, everyone's here! How's Lee?"

"She's burning up," Carrie said, feeling Saylee's forehead. "She scratched herself on you…"

"My poison ain't that bad," Nider said nervously.

"Humans are much more fragile than we are," Hernan said, watching Silver locate an antidote and spray it into the wound on Saylee's left palm. "She's not leading any Rocket base raids any time soon."

"_You're_ here to fight Team Rocket?" Silver scoffed. "Pathetic. You're even weaker than _they_ are. _I'm_ going to deal with them."

"No, you're not," Carrie said severely. "You're far too young to face scum like them…"

"You can't stop me!" Silver shouted. "I _hate_ them!"

"Why?" Tobias asked. "Why do you hate them so much? Why do you hate _Lee_ so much?"

"'Cause… 'cause they're _weak_," Silver said, dropping the empty antidote bottle and striding over to stand next to Tyra. His Magneton nervously looked from his trainer to Saylee.

"Aye, right," Mary scoffed. "That isnae a real reason. You keep slingin' that word 'round at folk you dinnae like. So whit's the real reason?"

"Why's there have to be one?" Silver demanded. "Why can't I just hate them?"

"Nobody just _hates_ people," Tobias argued. "You've gotta have a reason."

"Silver!" the Golbat called, flying back with the large water-type that Chaz had seen before following. She had to be Tyra. "What're all of these…?"

"_Hers,_" Silver said venomously, nudging Saylee with his toe. Chaz snapped his fangs at the kid, and Tyra and the Golbat leapt protectively in front of Silver. Tobias flew down to Saylee's belt to release Chip and Georgia.

"Tyra!" Chip said, looking around and picking up fairly quickly on the situation. "Can we _not_ be gettin' into a fight? We've all been comin' here to be fightin' Team Rocket… couldn't we be fightin' together?"

"A fine idea indeed!"

Diana encircled them all as another human approached. A plump yellow Pokémon walked beside him. The human had spiky-pale red hair and was wearing a tatty black cloak over an embroidered, equally tatty blue suit.

"What a small world it is, to run into that girl again at this time and place," Lance mused.

"Who the hell are _you_?" Silver demanded.

"Lance!" Chaz snarled, stepping forwards and cracking his claws. "Funny seeing you out of your cave."

"Well, Lorelei put the word out on Team Rocket," Lance said, unintimidated by the large and angry Charizard stalking towards him "I refuse to let them misuse Pokémon in this fashion…" he patted the arm of the Dragonite next to him, who was barely taller than he was. Chaz realized that it was severely undersized for a Dragonite. "Draek got lucky that his forced evolution was without deformities… but I see here a very beautiful Dragonair that has escaped such a fate!" He bowed to Diana. "Can it be that Saylee has earned _your_ respect?"

"Work not your charms on me, dragonlord," Diana said stiffly, "for mine soul and life are owed to the lady's will."

"Why do you guys talk like poofs?" Silver asked. "And why do you wear such a stupid outfit?"

"When you are older and wiser, boy," Lance said mildly, "you will learn to better aim and focus that bitterness. It can make for a powerful weapon. Right now, mine is focused on Team Rocket… as, I'm sure, is yours," he said, holding his hand out to Chaz. "We must move quickly to neutralize this threat now. Will you fight with me?"

"I'll _fight_ you, alright," Chaz snarled. "We've got no reason to trust a killer like you…"

"Chaz, wait!" Carrie said, stepping towards him.

"You're _not_ thinking of teaming up with him," Chaz said incredulously. "That son of a bitch and his Pokémon killed Lorenzo and would've killed us all given half a chance!"

"Wait, _what_?" Chip said, flaring up.

"But right now, Team Rocket are a higher priority," Carrie insisted. "We can't get Saylee safely to a clinic in Mahogany until every last Rocket is driven out. What do you think they'll do to her if they catch her in this condition?"

"Burn," Chaz snarled.

"Besides, we might get lucky," Hernan added consolingly. "They might take each other out."

"We're standing right here," Draek pointed out.

"You're not idiots," Carrie conceded. "You _know_ we don't trust you." She looked up at Chaz. "Anyway, wouldn't you rather he was down there in Mahogany instead of hanging around up here?" She nodded at the feverish Saylee.

"Sounds fair enough," Georgia said. "T' enemy o' moy enemy…"

"I'd assure you all that I bear you no ill will if I thought you'd believe me," Lance said. "We've tarried here too long, in any case. Shall we?"

"Hernan and I will go with you," Carrie agreed. "Once we've taken out Team Rocket, we'll—"

"Haud it," Mary butted in. "I dinnae ken who this tube is, or whit's gaun' on here, but if you're gaun' efter Team Rocket, you're no' leavin' me behind. Them brounfluffs went efter ma Maw!"

"Oi ain't hangin' 'round up 'ere either," Georgia said, folding two of her arms firmly and cracking the knuckles of the other two. "T'weren't for them, Wendy weren't've doid."

"Georgia, you can't be goin' away from Toby!" Chip said. "I can still be hearin' that signal even if it's not hurtin'! Without Toby, you'll really be hurtin'! If you're t'be goin', all four of us got t'be goin'!"

"I'd like to go help Mary…" Tobias said tentatively.

"No, Toby," Carrie said firmly. "I know you've gotten much stronger, but right now… you need to use that strength to protect your friends. Please, Toby, stay here. You, Diana and Chip are needed to protect Saylee. Besides…" she gave her son a hug. "I can't stomach the thought of you being anywhere near Team Rocket…"

"Gimme Georgie's pokéball," Nider said. "I can carry it. If she gets hurt too bad, I'll put 'er away and avenge Wendy myself, got it?"

"Oi loike that plan, moy love," Georgia said, fistbumping him.

"And where do you think _you're_ going?" Chaz said as Silver and Tyra started walking away.

"I'm sick of listening to you weaklings," Silver growled. "I could've taken care of those Rocket wimps in the time you've spent _talking_."

"Oh no, you're not going anywhere," Chaz said, grabbing him by the back of his big black jumper and ignoring Tyra's warning snarl or the sparks from his Magneton. "You're just a little kid. Besides, Saylee's probably going to need another couple of antidotes applied and those stupid things need human hands. Diana's only got a tail, Toby and Chip don't have fingers, and this is not what my claws were made for. You're staying here with us, got it?" He set Silver down next to Saylee.

"Let me _go_!" Silver yelled, incensed. "Don't you tell me what to do!"

"You heard him, firebutt," Tyra growled. "Let. Him. _Go._"

"Bring it on," Chaz said. "I've fought better water-types than you."

"He has," Carrie said. "When Saylee wakes up, you have to tell her about that fight with Sam!"

"We waste time," Lance said, holding onto Draek's arm as the Dragonite flapped his wings and flew into the air. "Make for the souvenir shop that's 'just a souvenir shop, nothing suspicious about it, no need to be alarmed'!" He shouted the last part sarcastically as he and Draek flew off.

"Be careful," Chaz said as Carrie and Hernan led the others off.

"You too," Hernan responded wryly.

"You wimps, running away!" Silver snarled. "Tyra, use water gun!" Chaz flapped out of the way of the water gun and landed on top of Tyra, clamping her jaws shut between his claws. The Magneton sparked at him, but Diana wrapped herself around it, earthing its electricity harmlessly in her horn.

"Give it a rest, kid," Chaz said. "Can't you see we're trying to protect you?"

"I don't _need_ your protection!" Silver snarled, returning the struggling Tyra. The Golbat flew towards Chaz, backing up sharply when Chaz spat fire at him. "Or _hers_… I don't know why she's stupid enough to keep getting herself hurt like this, but I don't _need_ it, you hear? I can take care of myself just _fine_!"

"C'mon, Silver," Chip said. "Just 'cause your folks left you—"

"What'd you say?!" Silver shouted angrily. "That's none of your business!"

"How'd you know that?" Tobias asked Chip.

"Shot in the dark," Chip said with a shrug. "You've been blamin' Lee for them leavin', right?"

"It's her _fault_!" Silver said stubbornly. "And _yours_…" he glared at Chaz. "Dad used to be strong. The _strongest_. But this… this _wimp_ came long…" he glared at Saylee. "She's weak, and _they're _weak, but I'm _not_! I'm going to beat Team Rocket and find them and prove it!"

"A fascinating menagerie of goals," Diana said, squeezing the struggling Magneton. "But what might the destruction of Pidgey-livered troglodytes and the desire to surpass one's parents have between them?"

"…_What_?" Silver asked, staring at her. "Let Mag go!"

"Are your parents in Team Rocket or something?" Tobias asked.

"Would explain why he's bein' a thief o' Pokémon," Chip agreed.

"I didn't _steal_ anyone!" Silver argued.

"So Tyra and that Sneasel…?" Chip shot back.

"They both actually wanted to come with him…" Mag put in timidly.

"That's _right!_" Silver snapped triumphantly. "They were living with wimps that didn't know they had strong Pokémon."

"For what it's worth, I don't think you're a bad trainer," Tobias said. "Saylee agrees. Because even though you keep going on about how much you hate weaklings, you don't throw your Pokémon away. Even when you've lost fights, you still have them all."

"…cause they're _mine_," Silver said, reaching out briefly to his Golbat before curling up in a little ball of huff. "I don't need people. People are _weak_. But they're my Pokémon, and they're _tough_, no matter what anyone says."

"Thanks," his Golbat said. He sounded surprised, like he'd never heard his trainer stick up for him before.

"Wow, never thought he'd _say_ it," Mag muttered in surprise.

"Here," Chaz said, holding out another antidote bottle. "Apply some more of that, will you? Please."

"...fine." Silver uncurled, grabbed the bottle and started applying more antidote. "I don't want to owe _her_. She's the reason it all fell apart…"

"What're your parents' names?" Chaz asked. "If we know, then when we run into them, we'll know to stand back and leave them to you."

"…Dad's been missing for ages," Silver muttered. "But you know him. Don't you remember?"

"Work with me, kid," Chaz sighed. "I'm no Alakazam, I can't read your mind, and frankly a lot of you humans look alike to me. What's your father's name?"

"My dad," Silver said, his voice on some weird point between pride and revulsion, "is called Giovanni."

{}

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_PLOT TWIST! … Which is totally not a twist if you've played the Celebi event in HGSS. To be fair, I don't know how many people have. Those event Celebi are like bloody gold dust outside of Japan._

_Name: Gabriel. Species: Gyarados. Nature: Timid. Ability: Intimidate. Level: 30_

_(Good grief, what is with his nature? It's completely opposite to his ability and his being a Gyarados XD)_


	23. Chapter 22

_Pokémon: 21 Deaths: 1_

"What's a 'souvenir shop', anyways?" Nider asked as they ran towards Mahogany.

A beam of white-hot energy blasted through the wall of a building ahead of them, slamming a charred and blackened lump of meat that might once have been human against the wall of the next building.

"I guess that is," Hernan said, revolted. "Let's get in there and try to avert mass murder."

"Perfect timing," Lance said as they ran in through the hole in the wall. Draek was holding a second man up by the neck. "He's locked the door… what's your name, Graveler?"

"Oi'm Georgia," she said warily.

"Those look like four strong arms," Lance said, pointing at a huge cabinet. "Could you kindly push that aside and rip up the floor? I believe the trapdoor is under there."

"I'll give you a hand," Nider offered. The pair of them hauled the cabinet aside and found a sealed trapdoor, which smashed aside easily enough once Nider had frozen it with an ice beam.

"Good, it doesn't sound like he managed to set off any alarms," Lance said, looking back at the captive Rocket, "and he's not going to. Draek…" he snapped his fingers, and Draek snapped the man's neck.

"Raikou wept!" Mary swore. Hernan leapt forward and knocked Lance backwards with a punch. Georgia and Nider moved to grab Draek when he went for Hernan.

"Dammit, Lance!" Hernan yelled. "If you can't do this without killing, then so help me I will ice punch both you and your dragon's faces off here and now!" His fists iced over.

"Why so angry over _their_ worthless lives?" Lance said, calmly picking himself up and descending the stairs. "They've killed friends of yours."

"Yes…" Carrie said, kneeling next to the dead man. "You kill. They kill. We don't. That's rather the point." She muttered a quick prayer for the murdered Rockets.

"Got tae say, pretty ballsy tae assume yous can take 'em all oot wi'out havin' tae kill any o' 'em," Mary said.

"And you just punched a _dragonmaster_!" Nider laughed, watching Draek follow Lance downstairs. "Man, that's _hardcore_!"

"I'll do it again, too," Hernan said, leading them down the stairs after Lance and Draek. "We've beaten Lance before. He's tough, but he doesn't like ice."

Below them, alarms finally began to blare.

{}

"Giovanni? Who's that, then?" Chip asked.

"Giovanni?" Chaz demanded. "As in, the head of _Team Rocket_, Giovanni?"

"Yeah, that's right," Silver growled. "He always made out like he was so tough, but he… he lost to _kids_, and then he _ran away_, like he was _weak_… left us behind…" For a fleeting moment, the kid looked painfully lost and lonely. Then his face hardened into an icy mask. "I saw you, you know," he said bitterly to Chaz. "With _her_. When you were attacking the _wimps_ at the front, Dad made me leave and hide outside, on my _own_. And then he ran _away_, and he wouldn't stop, even when I… I _begged_ him not to…" the kid scowled. "Then Mum came back from the Islands, and I told her what'd happened. I thought, now she was back, now she knows he's weak, we wouldn't need _him_ anymore… but right away, she wanted to come out here and find _him_. I bet she hasn't even noticed that I ran away… and it's ALL HER FAULT!" He jumped to his feet, glaring at Saylee.

"…I'm sorry."

"Lee!" Chip said, running to Saylee's side. "Don't you be movin', you been poisoned."

"So that's why… you hate me…" Saylee murmured weakly, glazed eyes gazing at Silver. "Makes sense… 'splains a lot… I'm sorry that you suffered, Silver… I really am, but… we couldn't let Giovanni go… he was hurting people… Pokémon—"

"_Weaklings_," Silver spat. "There's nothing wrong with the strong using the weak! What else are they _good_ for?"

"Sounds like Giovanni, alright," Chaz snorted. He leaned down to glare closely at Silver. "But what's all that strength for, huh? Strength for the sake of being strong? That's pointless. There's no better use for strength than protecting those who're weak."

"Why _should_ I protect wimps?" Silver demanded. "Who says I have to?"

"But when you're weak…" Saylee said hoarsely, "like I am… right now… don't you want someone… to protect you?" She coughed. "When you were… young and weak… someone protected you…"

"I'm _not_ weak!" Silver shouted. "I've never been _weak_! Not for one moment!"

"Yes… you have…" Saylee murmured. "Your Golbat… used to be a blind little Zubat… That Gyarados… you wanted to catch… used to be a helpless Magikarp…" she coughed heavily again, rolling on her side to breathe more easily. "Everyone's weak… from time to time… you can't grow strong… if you don't start out weak…"

"I don't have time to listen to this bleeding heart nonsense!" Silver yelled. "You make me _sick_! What the hell do you care, anyway? Why do you act like you give a shit about me?! Don't think I'm going to fall for that! You're Mum and Dad's _enemy_!"

"Doesn't make you… my enemy…" Saylee murmured. "'Sides, I didn't know that… when we met… back then, you were just…"

"_It's a long story… but I don't think that kid should be left on his own…" Tyra said, before running after her trainer._

"…just a lonely kid," she said, staring sadly at him. "Looking like… you needed help… that you didn't want…"

"You're damn right I don't want _your_ help!" Silver said angrily. "Guess you're not _completely _retarded."

"That's _rude_," Saylee chastised him, sitting up with the support of Diana and Chaz. "You're… a jerk, y'know?"

"That's _rude_," Silver said mockingly.

"But true," Saylee laughed. The laugh quickly devolved into another bout of coughing. "Probably true… that I'm dumb… guess you just… kind of remind me… of another jerk kid… I used to know… all pride and stubbornness… done stupid things, done _terrible_ things… but not a bad guy, in the end… means well, for all that… just didn't know any better way…" She smiled a little. "Turned out alright, I guess… 'cause he had… his sister… his grandpa… his friends… what've _you_ got, Silver?"

"That better not be fucking _pity_," Silver said incredulously. "That's it, I'm done wasting time on you. C'mon, Zeb, Mag." He turned on his heel to walk off.

"Didn't know… you knew their names…" Saylee said, smiling at his Golbat and Magneton. Silver froze with a stricken expression that morphed into horror.

"Well, well, well… what have we here?"

{}

"See?" Lance said as the Rocket screamed, clutching at the stump where his left arm used to be. "I didn't kill him."

"Mother of…" It took all of Carrie's self-control not to just brain Lance with her club then and there. "Lance, _why_ did you have Draek rip this man's arm off?"

"Didn't trust him," Lance said, turning back to the man. "So how do you get into the main office? Think carefully now."

"TWO passwords, okay?!" the victim cried. "There's two, but I swear, I don't know either! PLEASE!"

"Fine," Lance said, shaking his head at Draek. The Rocket sobbed in relief and then fainted as the Dragonite stepped away from him. "We'd better split up and find that office. Whoever's in charge will be there."

"There's hostages doon 'ere somewheres," Mary pointed out. "The shopkeep's family an' a few other folk, I think."

"Don't you _dare_ get them killed," Carrie said to Lance.

"Give us some credit," Lance said, striding off to face an oncoming trio of Rockets with Raticate.

"Oi'm thinkin' it's best we foind them 'ostages first," Georgia said, watching Draek tear into the Raticate. "That man ain't roight in the 'ead."

"Tell us about it," Hernan muttered. "Let's try this way."

Rockets were scurrying every which way like panicked Rattata, easy enough for five Pokémon to take out even without a trainer to coordinate them. Though Nider would never admit it, he was pretty impressed. So was Georgia. Carrie and Hernan swiftly and nonlethally dispatched swathes of Pokémon and humans alike. Hernan had a fascinating range of elemental punches—Mary was already trying to imitate his thunderpunch—and Carrie could produce both fire and ice from her bone club. From the combination moves they pulled off together, this wasn't their first melee.

After taking out most of the Rockets in the halls, Mary, Hernan and Carrie split off into three small surveillance offices to smash up the equipment. Georgia and Nider continued on down the hall and spotted the hostages huddled together against the far wall of a large, open room. There were ten humans, one with grey hair, a couple about Saylee's age and one that was very small, barely more than a human baby. Aside from the few square feet of open ground that the hostages were huddled on, the floor was covered in crackling red-and-white Pokémon.

"Don't touch those Voltorb!" a teenage girl with long brown hair called over. "They'll zap you."

"An' what's that got t'do wi' the proice o' tea in Kanto?" Georgia asked, wading through the buzzing cluster unharmed. "Come on then, moy loves. You'll be roight safe in Georgia's arms."

"Georgia, somethin' ain't right…" Nider said warily. The Voltorb weren't looking angry or threatening— they looked _frightened_…

"No!" Mary shouted, running into the room as the Voltorb began to glow. "They're 'bout tae blow! Georgia, get oot—"

Nider and Mary were flung backwards into the hall as the room exploded.

{}

"Hey, it's the Exec's missing kid!" one of the Rockets said, pointing at Silver.

"And look who he's with!" another man cried, staring at Chaz and stepping back. "A Charizard… and a brunette! You're _Saylee_!"

"Sounds like he's wet himself," Silver sniggered. "_Weak_."

"A kidnapper now, are you, bitch?" a woman with short pink hair snarled. "Don't worry, sweetie, we'll get you back to your mum soon enough. Boys!" the three of them released a menagerie of Raticate, Muk, Golbat and Weezing. Chaz and Chip flared up and stepped forwards. Silver's expression hardened into a scowl.

"Don't tell me what to do!" he shouted angrily, releasing Tyra. "I'm not a KID!"

"Silver, are you going to fight with us?" Tobias said excitedly.

"Shut up!" Silver snapped. "They don't get to tell me what to do, and neither do _you_! Bite them, you two! Mag, Thunderbolt!"

"Sure thing," Tyra said, snarling viciously at the sight of the Rockets. She and Zeb darted forwards, fangs bared. Mag immediately zapped an enemy Golbat out of the air.

"We appreciate it, still," Saylee said, putting an arm around Diana's neck to hold herself up. "Chip… wanna see what a Flamethrower looks like?"

"Pay attention, little guy," Chaz said, turning and casually blasting fire over a pair of Golbat that were attempting to flank him.

"The Silver child is a most complex youth, is he not?" Diana commented. She looked up at the sky. "I do so hope that our comrades fare well…"

{}

"Georgia!" Nider yelled, digging into the rubble. "Answer me, girl! GEORGIA!"

"By the bones and spirits," Carrie muttered as she and Hernan ran in. "What happened?"

"Voltorb, couple dozen ay' 'em," Mary said shakily. "They Rocket bastarts must ay set 'em tae blow if somethin' got through…"

"Georgia and those humans are under here!" Nider snapped. "Georgia's a tough lump, but she wasn't doin' so well with that signal! Dammit, help me DIG!"

They began moving rubble and Voltorb fragments, keeping up a muted litany of curses against Team Rocket (Nider wondered if Carrie's wouldn't actually do something) and shouting for Georgia.

"Hello?" Muffled human shouting began to drift out of the rubble as they dug.

"Hello!"

"We're down here!"

"We're okay!"

"Help us!"

"Hurry—I think she's hurt!"

"Georgia!" Nider shouted, finding a curiously warm lump of stone. "Georgie, speak to us— huh?"

As they cleared away the rubble, it became more and more noticeable that Georgia's hide was an odd colour. It was also no longer rough, but smooth and cobbled, except for huge cracks around her four arms that showed scraped and softer stone beneath. She was semiconscious as they rolled her out.

"Get her into her pokéball _now_," Hernan ordered sharply. Nider quickly withdrew Georgia's pokéball from where he'd wedged it into a chink in his plating and returned her.

"Least she winnae be able tae hear that annoyin' bloody noise anymair," Mary commented.

"I wonder if it wouldn't be bothering her less anyway," Carrie said, hauling a little girl out of the wreckage. "I think she evolved. Shhh… there, there, little one. It's alright. You're safe."

"We wouldn't be if she hadn't shielded us," the silver-haired lady said, straightening her glasses. "Those awful Rockets had those poor Voltorb wired up to explode if any but a certain path were taken through them… They changed it every time they used it, though, so we couldn't get out."

"Sounds like them," Carrie agreed, ramming her bone club into the ground in front of a pile of Voltorb pieces and beginning to pray.

"You're the shopkeep an' family, aye?" Mary said. "Better get up there an' tell 'em you're safe. The stairs up're clear. If they Rocket bastarts were takin' hostages, there's got tae be someyin up there they're fright of, aye?"

"My husband is an extremely powerful trainer," the silver-haired woman said smoothly. "Sir Arthur Pryce is his name, an ice master. I think these awful men deserve to learn just how bad frostbite can get."

"Oh, let me get my Pokémon from where I hid them and then we can _party_," the teenage girl said, grinning as they ran out of the room and headed for the stairs up.

"Between him and Lorelei, these guys can't catch a warm break," Hernan said as he watched them go, though he didn't seem against it. "Nider, Mary, you two see the humans out safely. You need to get Georgia to someone who can heal her, too."

"What about you guys?" Nider said, looking from him to Carrie. Carrie stood up and withdrew her bone club.

"They're at rest," she said. "I promised them vengeance, and they shall have it. Let's go see if Lance found out who's in charge here."

"We won't let Lance kill them," Hernan said. Carrie shook her head.

"Nor will we, of course," she said, "but for what they've done to these poor creatures, they might just wish we would."

{}

"Incompetent fools! Can't you even defeat a couple of children?"

Silver gasped sharply as another man stepped out of the trees. He was wearing a long, faded black overcoat and had a black hat pulled over his face. His face was too shadowed to discern, but Silver seemed to recognize the outfit. "D-Dad…?"

"Giovanni?" Saylee said in surprise. "Oh, please…. You're not even the right height." Tobias flew past his head, stealing the hat. "And you look… _nothing_ like him. Points for the voice, though..."

"But why?" the man complained, pulling off a black wig and some face putty, revealing bright purple hair and beard. "I worked so hard to get it right!"

"Don't worry," Saylee assured him. "It's not a shock… to see a Rocket mess things up…"

"What the hell are you trying to pull, Petrel?!" Silver yelled furiously.

"Just trying to instil a little morale into the troops," Petrel said, nudging an unconscious Rocket with his foot. "Guess it didn't work. Oh, well. And what are _you_ doing, huh, kiddo? Do you know who this girl _is_?"

"I'm going to beat her _myself,_ Petrel!" Silver snarled. "In a _match_, me and her, not sneaking around or ganging up on people like a _coward_!"

"Independent wee bugger, isn't he?" Saylee said, pulling herself to standing with Chaz's help. She'd managed to self-apply another antidote, and while it had taken some of the heaviness from her limbs, it was making her head spin. "Don't fuss, Chaz, I'm feeling better... I really need a checkup and… probably some blood drained… but first things first." Petrel smirked, releasing a Weezing and a Golbat.

"Bring it on, little girl," he said. "I'll do what Giovanni couldn't and take you ou—"

Mag electrocuted the Golbat, bringing it to the ground.

"You talk too damn much, _weakling_," Silver spat. Petrel ducked as Zeb flew at him. "Besides, I told you, _I'm_ gonna beat her." With the Golbat down, Tyra attacked the Weezing, biting it out of the air. With his Pokémon down, Petrel turned and fled. "Come back! COWARD!"

"Ooog…" Saylee slumped against Chaz's side. "Now that I'm standing up… I do feel like I'm gonna hurl…"

"Why the hell did you stand up, then?" Silver said as Diana helped Saylee lie down on Chaz's back. "Idiot."

"You're not the only one… who doesn't want to look weak," Saylee muttered. "Especially not… in front of someone like Petrel… he's probably run back… to the base in Mahogany…"

"He's not getting there! C'mon, Tyra!" Silver shouted, running off. Tyra, Mag and Zeb went after him.

"We've gotta… follow him…" Saylee muttered, shivering. Even with Chaz's immense body head, she felt chilly.

"My lady, you ought to rest yourself," Diana said. "In your veins now runneth both the poison of Nider and medicine not meant for you, and is indeed almost poison itself unto your blood…"

"She's right, Lee," Chip agreed. "You need t'be restin'."

"I need rest and… human medicine…" Saylee muttered, "and I'll get both… once Mahogany is out of… Rocket hands…"

"We're wasting time," Chaz said, spreading his wings. "Chip, Toby, get up here and help hold her steady. Let's go roast some arse!"

{}

{}

_This chapter posted in celebration of the end of Death Week. Three performances, two essays and a viva voce down! One more performance to go, but that's three weeks away and three weeks is bloody ages compared to the amount of time we've had for some of these. *falls over quietly dead*_

_Just in case you thought Chaz's paranoia was unjustified… nope. In the games, Lance is a psychopath. It doesn't matter if it's Team Rocket he's fighting, getting a _Dragonite_ to use _Hyper Beam_ on an unprotected human?!_

_And I maaaaaaay have traded Georgia to evolve her but plot gave me a legit reason to do so. So there. She's a Golem._


	24. Chapter 23

_Pokémon: 21 Deaths: 1_

"Dammit!"

Lance slammed his fist into the metal door as "VOICE NOT RECOGNIZED" flashed up again in red holographic letters on the door, beeping loudly.

"D'you think we should go back and wake up that scientist that told us the passwords?" Draek suggested.

"Starting to," Lance agreed.

"What the hell are you doing, poofter?"

"Watch the mouth, child," Draek snarled. Lance shook his head and put a hand on Draek's arm. The child was rude, no doubt, but he wasn't there as an enemy, and his Pokémon were giving Draek a look as if they would rip a chunk out of anyone who touched their trainer, although perhaps they were simply in pain from the radio signal. _The Golbat and the Magneton are nothing to worry about, but the Sneasel and the Feraligatr could be trouble…_

"What are you doing here, boy?" he said. "You were to stay at the lake with Saylee. Where is she?"

"How the hell should I know?" the child demanded. "I'm not her babysitter! Anyway, shouldn't you be running? There's an angry old coot up there icing up everyone in black!"

_Guess they freed the hostages, then. Sounds like Arthur Pryce is still a force to be reckoned with. Some things never change. _"I need to get into the generator room first," he said, gesturing to the locked door. "That generator needs to be disabled in order to shut off the signal." The boy's Pokémon looked sharply at the door. "The password's 'Giovanni', but it also seems to be voice-encoded. I would smash it open, but more than one explosive booby-trap has been set in this place. I heard one go off earlier."

"So it only opens if the right person says 'Giovanni', huh?" the boy said, spitting "Giovanni" as if it were a filthy word.

"Well, can we find _someone_?" the Sneasel said irritably. "That noise is so _annoying_…"

"Maybe _she'll_ know," Draek said, pointing down a perpendicular hallway. The child looked around and adopted an expression of shock, hurt, and the barest flash of joy.

"Mum!" He shouted, stepping forwards involuntarily, before catching himself and stepping back again. He crossed his arms and scowled fiercely at the red-haired woman. She was fairly tall, with sharp, cold features and dark red hair and eyes.

"Thank goodness!" she said, smiling sweetly, though the smile did not reach her eyes. She was flanked by a pair of sneering, black-clad Rocket grunts, but she herself was dressed in white. "I was so worried about you, sweetheart."

"Yeah, right," the boy snorted. "I'm amazed you even noticed I was gone. You've been having plenty of fun here, I bet. Have you even been _looking_ for Dad?"

His mother frowned. "I've been very busy, especially with people like this _awful_ man interfering," she said, jerking a thumb derisively at Lance. "But soon we'll find Gi—your father, and we'll all be together as a family again. Won't that be nice?" She smiled again, though Lance caught the brief flicker of her eyes towards the door when she nearly said Giovanni's name. "Come on, sweetheart… come home." She reached out to her son. Tentatively, he stepped towards her.

"I've got a better plan," Lance said, snapping his fingers and pointing at the boy. Draek grabbed him. "It looks like your voice can open the door. So open it, or we'll see if your boy's blood is any redder than his hair."

"Let me GO!" the boy screamed.

"I'll cut you, you bastard!" the boy's Sneasel screeched, leaping forwards, but the Feraligatr grabbed her.

"Don't, he could hurt Silver!" the large water-type snarled, struggling with the angry smaller Pokémon. The Golbat fluttered nervously behind her shoulder and then flew off down the passageway.

"Zeb!" the Magneton screeched, chasing after it.

Silver's mother just scowled. "I'm not opening the door," she said firmly. The boy looked stricken, then screamed in pain as Draek dragged a claw down his arm. His Feraligatr let go of his Sneasel, and they leapt towards Lance, but Draek stepped forwards and dug his claw in even more, making the boy scream louder as his blood dripped on the floor. The Pokémon both stopped in their tracks, but the woman in white didn't move or flinch.

"Lance, what the HELL are you DOING?!"

Draek howled as blue dragonfire hit him in the back. "Unhand the child, knave!" Diana snarled, readying another blast. When Draek flinched, Chaz darted forwards and snatched the child out of his grasp, setting him down next to Saylee, who was grey-faced but furious, leaning against the wall on the stairs down from the surface. The Golbat and Magneton flew past her shoulder to fuss over Silver. Saylee's Quilava ran up next to Diana, with the Togetic fluttering protectively around both of them. Lance stepped back, placing his back to the wall next to the door, trying to keep both the red-haired woman and Saylee in his sights at once.

"Draek?" he said quietly. Draek shook his head; no need for medical treatment. _Good. That blast just startled him, it didn't actually hurt him_…

"Silver, are you okay?" Saylee said weakly, glaring at Lance. Silver nodded dumbly, shaking and clutching his bleeding left arm, staring wide-eyed and pale-faced at his mother.

"Leave me alone, I'm fine," he muttered when his Pokémon immediately crowded around him. The Golbat, Magneton and Sneasel placed themselves defensively between Lance and their trainer, but the Feraligatr was glaring at Silver's mother. The Rocket executive's glare and those of her men were focused entirely on Saylee.

"_You,_" she snarled, grabbing her pokéballs. "Get away from my son _this second_!"

"So you care all of a sudden?" Silver snapped. "I only got hurt 'cause _you_ were too much of a bitch to open the stupid door!" He was angry, but his voice wobbled perceptively. His hand was shaking as he tried to staunch the flow of blood from his arm.

"Don't you _dare_ talk to me like that!" she snapped right back, pointing at the Pokémon surrounding him—Lance's and Saylee's and even Silver's own. "You two, help me deal with these insolent scum!" she screeched, looking to her subordinates.

"Yes ma'am, Ms. Ariana!" the men chorused, releasing a Drowzee and a Grimer as Ariana herself produced a Vileplume, Arbok and Murkrow. Silver's Pokémon, looking suspiciously at Draek, moved forwards to face them.

"You really think you can attack us with such weak Pokémon as those?" Lance said, gesturing Draek forwards.

"Silver, step back here, it's safer," Saylee called, digging into her bag and pulling out a roll of bandages. "Let me wrap up your arm…"

"You keep away from him, you little bitch!" Ariana snarled, pointing at Saylee. Her Vileplume jumped towards Saylee.

"Get her, Chaz," Saylee said. Chaz's flamethrower knocked the attacking Vileplume back easily. "Nice language to use in front of your child. So that's where he gets his filthy mouth from."

"Stop pretending that you _care_!" Silver shouted. He was trying to still sound angry, but his voice was shaking audibly. "Both of you! And stop pretending that _he_ cares, too! He fucked off ages ago and never said a word… isn't it obvious that old what's-his-name doesn't give a shit about us?!"

"_Giovanni _cares about us very much, you ungrateful little—" Ariana snarled, before turning as white as her uniform as the door _beeped_ and slid open.

"Got you to say it!" Silver laughed bitterly. He was still pallid and trembling, but he managed to grin horribly at his mother. "Sucker." He stepped towards Saylee, allowing her to wrap his arm into a clumsy sling, which made Ariana's face contort with rage again.

_Probably half of why the brat did it, _Lance thought, watching Ariana glower furiously at Saylee. _Still, kudos to him for getting the door open…_

Draek took out the Arbok and the Grimer in one sweep, while the Sneasel took care of the Drowzee. Chaz had already finished Ariana's Vileplume. "Come on, Draek, let's destroy that generator!" Lance shouted, running into the room.

"I shall assist you, should you be agreeable," Diana said, following. The huge, humming generator made her wince, but she still approached it proudly.

"I see that serving under Saylee hasn't kept you from being a true dragon," Lance said with a smile. "Then let's destroy it! ATTACK!"

{}

"Stop them!" Ariana shouted at her Murkrow. "Don't let them interfere!"

"Yes, ma'am!" The Murkrow flew after Lance and the dragons but was snapped out of the air by Tyra, who then leapt at Ariana.

"Tyra, what're you _doing_?" Silver shouted. Tyra spat the Murkrow out at Ariana.

"I've had just about enough of her," Tyra snarled, glaring at Ariana. "She acts like she cares, but hell, anyone can see she only cares about _Giovanni_. And just the same, it's obvious he doesn't care about either of you. He's probably wandered off and got yet another family already," she taunted Ariana, who actually _snarled_ in fury.

"Yet another…?" Saylee asked Silver, glancing between him and the doorway as she heard the sounds of battle in the next room. _What are Lance and the dragons facing?_

"Dad had another family… before," Silver muttered. Saylee looked sharply back at him. "I found a photo of him with a lady that wasn't Mum, with a baby. He said he looked for them but never found them, but that was _lies_, I bet. He probably never cared about them, any more than he ever cared about _us_…"

"Oh, Silver…" Unfortunately, it wasn't an uncommon tale. The fighting and destruction of the civil war had stranded a lot of people far from home with no identification. Some had begun new lives and new families, only to be identified years later by wives, husbands or children that they hadn't known they had. Saylee's own father was unknown, as were the parents of Brock, Misty, and most of the people who had drifted into Pallet. Professor Oak had never known who his wife was or what had become of her. Some people were still searching, seventeen years on, but it wouldn't be hard to believe that Giovanni had never bothered.

"How dare you?!" Ariana shrieked at her defeated henchmen. "You useless imbeciles! Don't you have any more Pokémon?"

"You wouldn't let us have more, ma'am…" one of the Rocket grunts began to argue. He shut up and all three Rockets backed away as Chaz and Tyra began to stalk towards them. Chip darted forwards to Chaz's side, flaring up at the Rockets, with Tobias hovering next to him to protect him, glaring angrily at the Rockets. Then Diana began to shout.

"Make haste and flee! It is a tr—"

Saylee grabbed Silver and bent protectively over the boy as the world began to shake.

{}

Everything was blurry and bright. Her head was _killing_ her, and the bright light wasn't helping. She reached up to rub her head, to cover her eyes, and something tugged on her arm. She grabbed her arm and felt a thin plastic tube attached to it.

What was going on? Where _was_ she? "Mum? Red?" she called, the only two names that sprang to mind. Then a third surfaced. "Blue? Somebody…?"

She heard a door open. "I'm here, Lyra," a woman's voice said. Somebody pressed glasses into her hand. She opened her eyes and put them on, looking around. She couldn't see anyone else in the white, airy room with her except a black-haired woman she didn't know.

"Where am I?" she asked.

"You're in the Mahogany Town clinic," the woman said. "Do you remember what happened, Lyra?"

None of that made any sense to her. "My name's not—"

"The Rocket Base caved in," a voice rumbled. She looked around to see a big orange head peering in through the window. A warm, familiar face.

"Chaz!" she said as memory began drifting back. She glanced around again and realized that Vera was the woman sitting next to her. Saylee had some kind of red fluid drip going into her arm and was wired up to a pulse monitor, so the clean, pale room had to be a hospital room. She looked out of the window and got a glimpse of paved streets covered in lumps of melting ice before Tobias flew through the window and hugged her. "Tobias too! I'm glad you're okay…"

"Chaz protected us!" Tobias said. "But we were so _scared_ when we couldn't find you at first…"

"I was worried you'd be disoriented," Chaz said, nudging her cheek. "Especially after getting knocked out again…"

"I still feel woozy…" Saylee was happy to see her Pokémon, but light still hurt her head, and she was already tired. "The last thing I remember is that we were underground… with Lance and Silver… and that executive woman."

"Ariana," Vera said. "The rubble from the hideout's been dug out, but there's no sign of her. Looks like she got away."

"Silver's gone too," Tobias added. "When we dug you all out, he called you stupid and then him and his Pokémon ran off. We would've gone after him, but we had to get you and ourselves out…"

"And he's calling _me_ stupid?" Saylee muttered. His arm had been bleeding so much… _damn_ _Lance and his extreme methods…_

The door opened again and Hernan and Carrie peered in, drawn by the sound of voices. They smiled at Saylee.

"We're glad to see you're alright," Hernan said, gently patting Saylee's hand. "They had Voltorb suicide traps all over the place… poor things had their shells cracked open and were hooked to explode under various conditions—including trying to escape—whether they liked it or not."

"There were Electrodes connected to the generator," Carrie added solemnly. "That's why the explosion was so much bigger. I'm sorry, but it killed Diana."

Saylee squeezed her eyes closed. She felt a human hand on hers this time, Vera's. Saylee could almost pretend that the comforting gesture was from her mother's hand, not the former Rocket's. It helped a little, but only a little. Her headache and exhaustion intensified sharply.

"Draek survived, probably because he'd evolved," Chaz said softly. "But he's in intensive care. So is Lance. Draek shielded him, but he still got pretty hurt."

"Georgia also got hurt protecting the hostages from a Voltorb explosion," Hernan said. "She also survived by evolving just in time, but she didn't evolve… um, right."

"What do you mean?" Saylee asked quickly, her eyes snapping open.

"I had a look in your Pokédex," Vera said. "The upper two arms on a Graveller normally fall off upon evolution, but she still has them. They still work, too, but there are large cracks in her shell. She'll be very vulnerable if hit in the wrong place." The door creaked open again as Chip lumbered in.

"Lee, you're up!" he said happily, leaning down to hug her. Saylee rubbed her eyes, but her swimming head wasn't causing her to see things.

"So're you!" She said in surprise. "Chip… you're a _Typhlosion_?"

"Oh… aye!" Chip said, looking down at his now five-and-a-half foot tall body as if he'd only just noticed that he was now bipedal. "Don't be worryin', wasn't that signal. Just been evolvin' yesterday, matter o' fact. Been trainin' with the big guy there." He ambled over to Chaz and the pair fist-bumped. "If him can't be settin' it on fire, it can't be gettin' set on fire!"

"That's… encouraging," Saylee sighed. "Nobody else was hurt, were they?"

"Everyone else is okay," Tobias promised. "Nider and Mary are visiting Georgia just now. Aside from Diana and those Rockets Lance killed, nobody's going to die."

"I'm glad, but…" Saylee took a deep breath to try and stave off tears. "Diana... I know you saw her off safely, Carrie. If Ariana's on the loose, I don't have time to cry…"

"I'm afraid you really don't," Vera said, picking up Saylee's pokégear and switching on the radio. "You've been out a couple of days. This started about six hours ago."

"—_dio Tower. This is the Radio Tower. We are pleased to declare Team Rocket's revival. ...Giovanni? ...Can you hear us? We have finally—"_

Vera clicked the pokégear off as Saylee felt the bottom drop out of her stomach. "They've occupied Goldenrod?"

"I've been hearing that signal again too," Tobias added softly. "Since that broadcast started. It's probably everywhere."

"Kanto was just a branch of Team Rocket," Vera said. "Most of the members there were recruited from the starving and desperate populace of Kanto. The main body of Rockets, the career criminals, they've still been out here the whole time, still active. There's more than enough foot soldiers, and now they have a city full of hostages."

"And Ariana recognized me," Saylee cursed. "So did Petrel. If I try to fly in on Chaz…"

"You don't have to," Vera said.

"You can't stop me going," Saylee said, pushing the sheet aside and swinging her legs out of bed. She pushed down the fog in her head, the heaviness in her limbs. She'd been tired before. She could keep going so long as she just didn't stop. "An entire city's at risk, and if they're using the radio tower to send the broadcast across the entire country, _millions_ of Pokémon could be suffering. Those foot soldiers at the lake… I'm not sure if they escaped Kanto or if they've just heard of me, but either way they were scared of us. I intend to give them every reason to be."

"I'm not trying to stop you going," Vera promised. "I'm just trying to stop you from flying in when you can _walk_."

"What?" Saylee said curiously. Vera picked up a bag at her heels and dumped a Team Rocket uniform onto Saylee's lap.

"I kept it in case it'd come in handy," Vera explained. "I washed and mended it. I'm not really a seamstress, but it's about your size anyway."

"Saylee, you're hurt," Chaz said warningly. "They took a lot of blood from you to get Nider's poison out of your system, and you're injured… This is a bad idea…"

"I know," Saylee said, making a face at the short black skirt. "Trust me, I'm keen to get this over and done with as soon as possible."

{}

{}

_EXPLOSION. FUCKING EXPLOSION. SO MUCH HATE._

_RIP Diana the Dragonair, level 15-35_

_On the plus side… I went to the midnight premiere of Iron Man 3 at the Omni Centre and it was just the best thing. Robert Downey Jr and Gwenyth Paltrow are beautiful human beings, I swear. _


	25. Chapter 24

_Pokémon: 21 Deaths: 1_

"I do _not _have the thighs for this…"

"I don't have matching trousers. Don't fidget, stop tugging at the skirt; it'll be a dead giveaway that you're not used to that uniform. Remember: you have an important report to make to Archer."

Saylee nodded him. "I remember him. Blue-haired wanker in a white outfit." She sat on one of the sofas to pull her boots on.

"Yeah, but he's Mr. Archer, sir to you while you're in that outfit," Vera corrected her. "The only reason Proton has the title of 'cruellest guy in Team Rocket' instead of Archer is because Archer gives something resembling a shit about his own Pokémon. Not that he isn't utterly brutal to everyone else."

"I know," Saylee said, remembering the screaming Lapras.

"Because he isn't inclined to abandon his Pokémon after a loss or work them to death," Vera said, straightening Saylee's black hat, "his Pokémon are among the strongest in Team Rocket. He's stronger than Ariana. Everyone knows that the only reason she outranks him is that she was shagging Giovanni. You might remember his Houndoom—I was fighting with him at the warehouse, if not very well."

"Not very well?" Saylee said. "That thing nearly crisped us!"

Vera nodded. "_Nearly_. And despite him threatening you with eternal burns, he wasn't actually bothering to use the dark fire that has that effect. He's much more deadly when directed by Archer, trust me. You got lucky that they elected to evacuate that day."

"Nope," Saylee said, getting up again to grab her pokéballs off of the sideboard and slip them into the pouch on her belt. "I didn't get lucky. _They_ did."

"Who is that?" and old woman yelled sharply. "Who's there?!"

"Wait!" Saylee shouted, spinning around to face the door and pulling off her hat as the lights flicked on. "Ma'am, it's okay, it's me, Lyra!"

"Lyra?" Ethan's grandfather said suspiciously. "What the hell are you doing in our house, girl? Why on earth are you wearing _that_ uniform?"

"I'm sorry," Saylee said quickly. "Your Pokémon let me in so I could change. I'm not in Team Rocket, I swear. This is an espionage deal."

"It is…?" Ethan's grandmother said, walking up and peering closely at Saylee. "You're awfully pale."

"I'll be fine," Saylee insisted, closing her eyes for a moment and focusing herself on something other than how woozy she did in fact feel. She'd probably sleep for a week when she could, but she couldn't. Not yet.

_Think of Diana. And Wendy. Rachel, Sparta, Olivia, Carrie's mother, Hernan's brother… and think of Silver. He's gone after them alone. He wants to prove himself, but he's just a kid, and his mother's already proved that his life isn't her first priority._

"Well, girl, if you are going out there…" Ethan's grandfather said nervously, "can you keep an eye out for Ethan?"

"Ethan?" Saylee asked.

"He went into the city with Marina before Team Rocket appeared, and we haven't seen him since…" Ethan's grandmother said tremulously. "The city gates have those awful thugs…"

"Yeah, we saw them when we were creeping around through the forests around the city limits," Saylee said, pulling her hair back into a single ponytail and then pulling the black Rocket cap low over her face. "Hence the costume. Go look after your Pokémon, they're huddled in the back. The signal's hurting them. Vera…"

"I know," Vera said, holding up the list of phone numbers that Saylee had given her. "Don't worry, I want to see Team Rocket finished here and now as much as you do. I've helped you too much. They'll murder me."

"I'll keep in touch," Saylee promised, walking out towards Goldenrod.

{}

To her surprise, Vera's pokégear rang ten minutes later, in between her own phone calls. "Is everything alright?" she asked, picking up.

"_You tell me._"

It was a young man's voice, so distorted by the crackle of static that Vera couldn't identify it. It was Professor Elm's caller ID, but it didn't sound like him… "Who is this?"

"_I was going to ask where you and Saylee are, but everyone's listening to a Team Rocket radio broadcast and talking about whether or not the Goldenrod Radio Tower's been taken over, so I'm going to take a wild flying guess that you're both somewhere near Goldenrod."_

It was the dry, irritated tone that sparked recognition. "Blue Oak!"

"_Where's Saylee? I need to talk to her. She doesn't know what she's doing._"

"She's beaten Rockets before," Vera said. "I'm sure she—"

"_I have absolutely no doubt of her ability to kick ass. It's just that if Giovanni _does_ show up, there's something she needs to know first. Now where is she? Don't make me ask again, echoes bug me._"

"She's in Goldenrod already," Vera said. "Try to get through those gates without a Rocket uniform and you'll have fifty Rockets to deal with. From what I've heard of Saffron, your face will put them on red alert just as much as Saylee's."

"_Kicking that much ass'll take too much time. Dammit, if I knew my way around this stupid country, Adam could teleport us in…"_

"Go to Cherrygrove market, and ask for Darren," Vera instructed. "His brother's Kadabra should have some directions for you."

{}

There were Rockets _everywhere_. A group of them were looting the department store and casino, while a large pack was besieging the police station. Only human officers and a single Arcanine were fighting outside; the rest of the police Pokémon were likely in too much pain to fight.

The rest of the Rockets were intimidating people into hiding in their homes. Saylee passed a few buildings where people had already barricaded ground floor doors and windows with furniture.

Saylee spent some time eavesdropping on a Rocket conversation about the girls in the Pokémon club hiding and crying at the back of their club instead of fighting. After she felt like she'd picked up the patter, she approached the group guarding the Radio Tower.

She stopped around a corner and into an alley next to the half-constructed train station for a brief moment, taking a deep breath. She still felt weak and tired, but she had to walk straight and speak without panting. She didn't have time to wait around and be questioned. Taking out the Executives and stopping the signal was first priority.

"Hey, where's the bosses?" she asked, keeping her hat low and speaking snidely out of her nose. "I've got big news to report."

"Well, spit it out," one of the guards said.

"That bitch Saylee's been seen up at the National Park," she said, pointing north.

"What? What the hell are you doing here?!" the guard shouted. "We need to take that fucker out!"

"I'm not attacking that crazy skank," Saylee shot back. "The bosses are tough, they can handle it."

"Right, wimp, you go tell them," the guard said, pointing up the tower. "C'mon, let's get some guys together and go take her down!"

"Suckers," Saylee muttered, walking into the tower as they ran off. The reception area was full of overturned plush sofas and fallen potted plants. There was a smear of blood on the security guard's desk. Nobody was in sight except for the guard on the stairs, who waved her up. Before she reached the stairs, though, the door burst open again.

"Shadow Claw!"

A Sneasel leapt past Saylee and slashed the guard on the stairs in the shins. He fell, clutching his bleeding shins and screaming, until Silver kicked him in the forehead.

"Silver?" Saylee gasped. "What're you—?!"

"_You_?" Silver said, turning an odd shade of white as he turned to notice her. "Why're you—what're you doing, dressed like _them_? Are you _one of them_?!"

Saylee realized that Silver was staring at her uniform. "Hold on, Silver, it's not—"

"Well, well, what's all the fuss about?"

Saylee spun around at that voice, reaching for the pokéball pouch on her belt, but her limbs felt heavy, and the movement made her dizzy. Proton moved much faster, grabbing her right wrist in a death grip and pushing her back against the wall. The tip of his knife scraped the left lens of her glasses.

The lens suddenly didn't feel like any sort of protection. On the contrary, it suddenly felt as if she had a knife blade and a lot of potential broken glass right in front of her left eye.

"Isn't this special," Proton said, grinning slowly as he raise the knife up to flick off Saylee's hat. "Both meddling little girls are the same person! With quite a right hook, as I recall." He pulled the knife away from her face and slashed it down, cutting across the back of Saylee's left hand as she tried to inch it around to her pokéball pouch and then cutting her belt off. He kicked it aside, putting Saylee's Pokémon out of her reach. She winced in pain as the knife bit into her hip as it cut through her belt.

"Oi, Proton," Silver said uncertainly. "What're you gonna do to her?"

"Your mother's waiting for you upstairs," Proton said. Silver started towards the stairs and then looked hesitantly back.

"You're not gonna… _kill_ her, are you?" he said awkwardly.

"And we care _why_?" his Sneasel wanted to know.

"You don't," Proton scoffed. "Why _should_ you care if she lives or dies? She's the reason your parents left you." Saylee saw Silver flinch.

"Yeah, but… she saved my life," Silver admitted grudgingly, clutching the dirty sling on his left arm.

"How very sweet," Proton said softly. "Go now, boy, and I promise I won't kill her. Good enough?" He pressed the knife into Saylee's throat a little and she gasped as she felt it draw blood. "Go on, now. Ariana doesn't want us to hurt you, but I have _such_ a short temper…"

"Silver, go on," Saylee choked out. "I'll be fine. You and your mother need to… talk… right? Go on…" She wished she had a Sneasel's claws, but she didn't like the look in Proton's eyes. In Slowpoke Well, he hadn't hesitated to try to gut Chip and Mary.

"If you really want, I could cut him down…" the Sneasel muttered.

"Don't," Silver said. "If she's as not weak as she says she is, she'll be fine. C'mon." He and his Sneasel ran up the stairs.

"Aren't children sweet?" Proton said, watching him go. "Don't worry, I really won't kill you… at least not right away. We owe you a lot…"

"Oh, you don't have to pay me back," Saylee said, ducking her head and kneeing him hard in the groin. He reflexively doubled over, letting go of her, giving her the space to push the knife away. She shoved past him and dove for her pokéballs.

"Now, now!" Proton growled, tackling her. Saylee landed hard on her stomach. "Not so brave or strong without your Pokémon, are you?"

"Let me go, you bastard!" Saylee yelled, struggling to get away and reach her Pokémon, but she just didn't have the strength. Proton was kneeling on her back with one arm pressed against her shoulder blades to hold her down. Saylee turned her head to look back at him from the corner of her eyes and tried not to panic as she saw him raising the knife again. She could hear Rockets running down the stairs behind him.

"Look, everyone!" Proton sang, thrusting the knife down. "She bleeds just like anyone else! Wanna see?"

"What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing?"

The Rockets on the stairs were knocked down by a blast of water that hit them with the force of a truck, judging by how it dented the handrail. At the same instant, a huge grey hand grabbed Proton's wrist before the knife reached Saylee. Two more strong grey hands gripped him around the neck, while a fourth grabbed his left arm.

"Here." An arm wrapped around Saylee's shoulders and pulled her to her feet. "What's with the ugly-ass outfit?"

"_Blue_?" Saylee said in surprise, wincing and pressing a hand over the wound in her right side as standing up sent a pang of pain through it. "What're _you_ doing here?"

"Saving your stupid ass, from the looks of it," Blue said, frowning. "Ceez, Saylee… you're whiter than a Persian… and you're still bleeding!" He sucked in his breath sharply and reached out to touch her neck. "That bastard tried to slit your throat…"

"It's not a deep cut, I'm alright," Saylee said. Blue pulled a roll of bandages out of one of his jacket pockets—he had a new grey jacket with quite a few—and handed them to her before turning an angry glare on Proton.

"Y'know, you're lucky Chaz isn't out just now," he said conversationally. "I only _wish_ I could breathe fire right now. Mario?"

"Yeah?" his Machamp said, tightening his grip on the struggling Proton.

"Don't you think that wall could do with a little more of his face?"

"Kinda think the world could do with a little less of his face," Saylee said, tying off a bandage around her hand and stooping to pick up her pouch of pokéballs. The room spun when she straightened up again, the wound in her side hurting every time she moved. "Oooh…"

"Saylee!" Blue put an arm around her shoulders to steady her. "Ceez, sit down a moment, will you? Mario, guard the front door. Sam…"

"Anyone who wants down these stairs better like water slides," Sam promised, sending another blast up at someone at the top of the staircase. Blue steered Saylee towards one of the few sofas that was still the right way up.

"We'll only have a few minutes," Saylee said, holding up her ponytail so Blue could wrap bandages around her neck. "They're broadcasting that signal all over the country. It's hurting young and weak Pokémon…"

"Would you calm down, moron?" Blue said, pressing the bandages and a cloth patch into her hand. "Here. You look like you've lost a lot of blood, so might want to hang on to what you've got left. Get that patch on your hip or something." He turned his back, a little red-faced, while Saylee pulled down the top of her skirt so she could put the patch over the cut.

"I can't wait to get this stupid uniform off now that espionage is bust," she grumbled. She pulled the skirt back up and handed the bandages back to Blue. "Thank you," she said softly. "For saving me from that creep. I just got poisoned and blown up a couple of days ago, so I know I'm rushing into this, but…"

"Well, what the hell else is there to do right now?" Blue asked. "Much as I'd love to drag your stupid ass to the hospital, there's Rockets running around on high alert out there, and Rockets on high alert up there." He pointed up through the ceiling. "One way or another, we're going to have to fight our way through, and I mean _we_. I know you're not going to drop this now. So I'll help you get it done _quickly_. No doubt it needs to be done. That signal needs to be destroyed. It's a good thing you're trying to do here, but…"

"You tend to get pretty mad at me for trying to do the right thing," Saylee said. Blue reached out to touch the cut on her neck again, and this time let his fingers linger.

"I get mad at you because you rush off on your own and get hurt like this," he said. "You think I _like_ seeing that? You're a good trainer, and your Pokémon are powerful, but that was no good against Proton just now, was it? You end up stuck on your own, and you shouldn't have to. You don't have to do this on your own."

"Thanks," Saylee said, reaching up to hold his hand. "It's not like I _want_ to do this on my own… I don't feel invincible with my Pokémon. I've seen them die too often. But right now…" she carefully stood up. "Shall we do this Silph Style?"

"Wait," Blue said, digging into his coat. "Before we go… well, it's just that, if Giovanni _does_ show up, there's something you might need to know first."

{}

"Hit both gates at the same time and you'll break up their habit of attacking en masse," Vera explained. "And the Execs'll be very busy soon enough. Without direction, your average Rocket recruit is liable to run for it when faced with any Pokémon that's actually been trained at all. Some will still fight, though. The Executives can be pretty scary when they're pissed off…" Vera fidgeted nervously. _If Giovanni returns, if this goes down badly and the Rockets win in any way, I'm a dead woman. _That was why she'd called every powerful trainer she could reach. Saylee didn't know that Vera was taking these measures, but she had to do everything she could. _Besides, do those kids really think they can take on an entire city of Rockets, just the two of them?_

"So we just have to scare them more than your executives do?" Peggy said, flaring up her new yellow crest.

"I think they'll be scared," Falkner said, petting her beak with a smile. "You've come a long way very fast… you're lucky that you were strong enough to handle that signal forcing you into a second evolution." His pokégear rang, sounding like a Hoothoot. "It's me. Who've you got…? Yep. Twenty minutes, then. Don't worry, I've got backup. See you there." He hung up and turned back to Vera. "Sir Pryce is out there with Morty, that psychic from Ecruteak, and a girl named Jasmine from Olivine. They say Chuck's on his way. It's pretty rare to get the old warrior out from under his waterfall…" he shook his head. "Just us two and our Pokémon on the south gate, I guess."

"…Mind if I join in?"

"Aren't you… Bugsy?" Falkner said, staring at the kid flying down on the back of a tall red Scizor. "The bug prodigy from Azaela?"

"Kinda," Bugsy said nervously. "I heard it was Team Rocket on the radio. They came to Azaela before and kidnapped our Slowpoke when I wasn't there to fight for them… I need to make them pay for that!"

"Fair enough," Falkner said, nodding to the kid. "Come on. I hope your insect can keep up with Peggy and Pawel!"

"Watch me, flyboy," Sadila said, shooting up into the air as soon as her trainer was on her back.

{}

{}

_Last essay done, last performance on Monday, then I'm done with this year of Uni! How am I halfway through my course already?_


	26. Chapter 25

_Pokémon: 20 Deaths: 2_

Some of the Rockets in the Radio Tower were Saffron escapees. They tended to run the second they saw Saylee and Blue. Others shouted at their retreating comrades for running away from "a couple of kids" and launched into the attack. That never lasted long. Saylee's Pokémon were furious to discover that their trainer had nearly been killed in their absence, and there was no more ready target for their anger than Team Rocket. Chaz's rage was such that his tail flame had actually gone white, something that Saylee had never seen before. Some items in his vicinity were spontaneously combusting, and Sam was spending as much time cleaning up after her enraged friend as she was actually fighting.

"How're you holding up, wimp?" Blue teased as they fought to free a group of terrified hostages; Saylee assumed that they were singers, as she recognized some of them from posters around Goldenrod.

"My knees are bloody freezing," Saylee complained, taking the teasing for what it was. "Couldn't give me your trousers too, could you? This skirt barely qualifies as clothes." He'd given her his jacket on the first floor, when another hostage had panicked at the sight of the uniform she was still wearing. He was so much taller than her now that his jacket was longer on her than the stupid skirt. She'd even had to roll up the sleeves.

The jacket was warm, at least, and it comforted her, helped her stay steady even when her world felt like it had tipped off its axis. The familiarity of bickering with Blue helped her feel normal.

"Didn't know you wanted into my pants that bad," he quipped, smirking. Nider sniggered.

"Wheesht and get rid of those stair guards," Saylee grumbled.

"The director's office is up there," said a man with a station headset slung around his neck and a t-shirt with the Goldenrod Radio logo. "I hope he's alright… he's been acting odd for the past few days…"

"We'll go see," Blue promised as they ran for the stairs. Saylee staggered a little on the stairs, dizzied by the incline. Without a word, Blue put a hand under her arm to support her. She was immensely grateful that he didn't tell her to go back or stay out of it. She couldn't, not now. He had to have known that when he'd shown her the photograph.

"Let's just get this over with," he said instead, pushing open the door to the director's office.

It was smaller than Saylee had expected. Only Carry, Hernan and Mary were able to follow her up out of her own Pokémon; all of Blue's but Edgar, his Exeggutor, were too large to fit up the stairs. That left six of them facing a man in a brown suit and hat, sitting in the director's chair behind a large, dark brown desk.

"Petrel, this is ridiculous," Saylee complained. "You didn't even dye your hair!"

"Yeah, well, doesn't matter over the radio, does it?" Petrel sneered, hitting a button under the desk. The door slammed shut and locked behind them. Petrel released a horde of Koffing and a big, belching Weezing as Carrie and Hernan leapt at him. The room rapidly filled with stinging purple smoke.

"It's poisonous!" Saylee shouted, pulling Blue's jacket over her nose and mouth. Blue dropped to his knees, tugging on her arm to get her to get down on the floor as well.

"You're not really over one bout of poisoning, let's not have another," he said, his voice muffled by his shirt. "Edgar, break that damn door down!"

"I cannae see a bloody thing!" Mary coughed. "CARRIE! HERNAN!"

Saylee heard a _click_ and felt a chill brush her face.

"He's going out the window!" she shouted to her Pokémon.

"No he's _not_!"

There was a keening wail, and a pink glow filled the room. Koffing began to fall out of the air, one after another. The Weezing was last, finally crashing heavily to the ground. The door broke down under Edgar's efforts, and the gas quickly dissipated, allowing them to see that the only thing left in the air was Tobias, glowing pink all over.

"See?" he said to his parents, who were holding Petrel down in a pair of armlocks. "I got _good_ at Extrasensory."

"That you did," Hernan said proudly, reaching up to fistbump his son.

"That was wonderful, Toby," Carrie said warmly, her voice turning back to ice as she looked down at Petrel. "Now, then… Petrel, was it?"

"Question," Saylee said, looking around. "Ariana's son came up the stairs. Where is he?"

"That stupid kid? He never came here," Petrel grunted. "Might've gone to the maintenance area… 's where the bosses are…"

"And just how do we get into _that_?" Blue demanded.

"On my desk… key to the basement entrance…" Petrel grunted. "Don't have the key… to th'one up here… Please… make 'em let go…!"

"That's up to them," Saylee said. Carrie and Hernan looked at each other, shrugged, and then stepped back, dropping Petrel roughly to the floor.

"You look tired," Blue said. "Edgar? Give him a nap." Edgar grinned, his many eyes beginning to glow as he rounded on Petrel.

"That was proper hard, Tobes," Mary said. "Well done, like." She gave him a kiss on the cheek, and Tobias nearly fell out of the air.

"Did you find anything, Toby?" Saylee asked, grinning at his reaction. Tobias collected himself and nodded.

"It's really busy out there," he said. "I saw Holly helping fight some Rockets away from the gift shop. She's evolved again! She's a great big Jumpluff! Oh, and Peggy and Steve, they're here with Falkner!"

"That's great," Saylee said. "What else?"

"Didn't see Ethan or Marina," Tobias confessed. "But y'know what I _did_ see? A Geisha going underground!"

"_What_?!" Mary and Saylee gasped together.

"A what?" Blue asked.

"A Geisha," Saylee said, grabbing his hand and pulling him back towards the stairs. "A really _weird_ woman. And if she's here, something weird is going on."

{}

There was some fighting in the streets, but it was nothing like Saffron. Goldenrod's population vastly exceeded that of Saffron, and while a single Pokémon was stronger than a single human, once they'd seen the Rockets getting beaten back, the cityfolk discovered that a Raticate and its trainer were easily knocked out by twenty humans with hockey sticks and crowbars. The Rockets were getting taken out en masse.

"That's the underground?" Blue said, watching Chaz and Chip knock a couple of guarding grunts aside. Chip was taller than they were now, and had developed a lot of brute muscle along with superior firepower.

"Yeah," Saylee said. She rubbed her eyes as dizziness assaulted her again. She really had lost a _lot_ of blood…

"Starting to wish I hadn't told you," Blue grumbled, taking her arm again to help her steady herself. "It's made you more stubborn than ever." Saylee squeezed his arm. "If I knew where the damn hospital was in this city, I'd be dragging your ass there ten minutes ago."

"Thank you for telling me," Saylee said softly. "Thank you for not trying to hide it…"

"Learned my lesson on that," Blue said, looking around at their Pokémon flanking them as they descended underground. Chaz, Chip and Sam were leading—Chip because he knew the way, Chaz giving him some flamethrower tips, and Sam keeping up a running commentary on how she could beat them both blindfolded. Mary was just behind them, chatting with Adam and Edgar, while close behind _them_ Tobias and Nider were bickering relentlessly about something. Carrie and Hernan followed close behind, whispering together. Saylee and Blue walked behind them, and immediately behind the humans, Georgia was talking to Mario about good four-armed attack moves while Gary and Pete made up the rearguard. Saylee hadn't wanted Georgia to come, but the four-armed Golem had been insistent, and didn't seem to be in any pain or discomfort despite the amount of cracked stone around her arms.

Of all of them, only Sam had been close enough to hear Blue tell Saylee what he'd found— though Adam, being a psychic, probably also knew. None of Saylee's own Pokémon knew. She was determined to tell them, of course, once Team Rocket was done for, but she couldn't help worry how they'd take it…

"Oi! It's you, isn't it?" Chip suddenly shouted. "The Geisha!"

Between Chaz and Sam, Saylee caught sight of the familiar heavy makeup and traditional red dress. The woman did not look the least bit intimidated by having a large Typhlosion, Charizard and Blastoise looming over her.

"You are Saylee, aren't you?" she said in some surprise. "Word was that you were sick in bed in Mahogany…"

"I was," Saylee said, wondering suspiciously where that "word" came from.

"Still should be," Blue muttered.

"But here we are now," Chip said, "What're you doin' here?"

"I see," the woman mused, looking from Saylee to Blue. "You might even be fitting to…" she trailed off and gave them a gracious bow. "I heard that the boy Ethan became entrapped down here. I am sure that you will be better able to rescue him than I. Good day to you, Saylee."

"_Ethan_'s down here?" Saylee said in horror. "What is that kid _doing_ here?"

"At a guess, I'd say gettin' his ass in trouble," Nider opined, suspiciously watching the Geisha totter off. "Can _we_ go get in some trouble?"

"You _are_ trouble, moy love," Georgia said, cracking all of her knuckles.

"I'm rubbish at theory talk," Mike said. "Enough of that. Want to see that Vital Throw?"

"Standard rules, guys, no killing and as few permanent injuries as you can manage," Blue said. "Other than that… they're Rockets. Have fun."

"If you see a ten-year-old boy with a Marill, give us a shout!" Saylee called as the heavy maintenance door creaked open, and their Pokémon rushed in.

There was a surprisingly large number of Rockets underground. Many had fled underground to hide rather than participate in the fighting in the streets above. They attacked with their usual swarms of barely-trained Pokémon, facing Saylee and Blue five-on-one. Saylee and Blue preferred quality over quantity, and their Pokémon proved that faith easily.

Three Rockets and their Pokémon were toying with an Azumarill who looked to barely have enough energy to stand, let alone continue to fight the thugs off. Saylee went to help the worn-out water-type as soon as Gary, Pete and Sam had taken up the attackers' attention.

"Lyra?" The Azumarill said weakly as Saylee sprayed potion into her wounds. "What're you doing here?"

"_Marina_?" Saylee said in surprise. "You evolved?"

"The noise… made me…" Marina muttered. "It's okay… had to protect Ethan…"

"Lyra!" Ethan cried happily as he crawled out from the box he'd been hiding behind. "You're here! Is Marina going to be alright?"

"She'll be fine with rest," Saylee promised him. "What're you doing here, Ethan?"

"We were playing in the arcade when Marina started hurting," Ethan explained, hugging his Azumarill. "When I tried to take her to Granny and Grandad's, there were these men in black everywhere chasing people with Pokémon, so we ran down here and hid…"

"The streets are safer now," Saylee promised, looking up. "Although not safe enough. Someone needs to take him back to his grandparents'…"

"Gary," Blue called. "You're the fastest and more than capable of turning anything in your way to cinders. Get this kid out of here safe, okay?"

"Sure thing," his Arcanine said, bounding over and crouching down to allow Ethan to climb up onto his back. Blue handed Marina up to him. "Hold onto the long cream fur tight, just don't pull any out, got it? And don't _you_ dare spit on me."

"I will if you're going to be that rude," Marina argued weakly.

"Thanks, Gary," Saylee said, scratching his ear. "Ethan, stay with Gary, okay? He'll see you home safe."

"Thanks, Lyra!" Ethan called. "Go get 'em!" Gary ran off, snarling viciously at anything that looked like trying to stop him.

"Saylee!" Carrie called. "Come here!"

"What is it?" Blue yelled as he and Saylee ran towards her shouting. "Find that maintenance entrance?"

"No," Hernan called. "We found the president."

{}

"There is a maintenance hatch down here, yes," the old man said apologetically, "but it's for the department store… our maintenance hatch is actually hidden in a wall on the third floor…"

"Dammit, that little Grimer tricked us," Saylee growled.

"Imagine, a Rocket lying," Blue said dryly.

"They have my son and his family," the president pleaded. "I had to let them install that awful machine… it's up on the observatory level…"

"Right, then," Saylee sighed. "Dammit… I do _not_ want to climb any more stairs…"

"So we won't," Blue said, turning to his Pokémon. "Alright, let's get back to the surface, and then everyone except Pete's going away for a bit!"

"And everyone except Chaz," Saylee added, catching on. They headed back to the surface and returned all of their Pokémon except for the two huge fliers.

"Goin' up?" Pete said as Blue hauled himself onto the Pidgeot's back. Chaz leaned down to make Saylee's climb easier. She lay down against his neck, enjoying the comforting warmth and focusing on not falling asleep.

"Let's go get this done," she sighed. "Once and for all."

{}

Silver had tried to talk to his mother, he really had. As usual, she hadn't listened at _all_. She assumed that, like her, he was content to stand safe up in this tower and watch people fight and Pokémon suffer. She _liked_ the fighting, but Silver really didn't care. She didn't get that he just wanted to go _home_.

So he tried shouting at her. He shouted loudly, wanting to drown out the high whine of the machine. It was doing his head in. Why wasn't it bothering them?

Archer had just scowled at him, and then his mother had slapped him and told him to stop howling like a baby. Then she'd ordered him to take out his Pokémon, telling him that they would make them strong. Silver had tried to tell her that they were strong already, that he was a _good_ trainer who could train strong Pokémon without cheating, but she wouldn't listen or believe him, as usual. She told him off for acting like a baby and then she went and treated him like one! She _always_ did that!

So he did release a Pokémon. He released Tyra, who was big and strong enough that the signal didn't bother her, and he told his mother that if she tried to take his Pokémon, Tyra would attack her.

Tyra seemed more than happy to. Tyra was the only one that Silver told _everything_ to. Silver got mad at his mother a _lot_, but he couldn't _hate_ her. She was still his mother. But Tyra could, and Tyra did, more than anything, even Saylee the liar.

"Ariana, can't you keep that boy under control?" Archer snapped. Silver could see it in his mother's face that she didn't like being talked down to like that, not one bit. Then she turned and Silver knew that she was going to take it out on _him_. She had that _look_, the one that meant that _he_ was about to pay for whatever was pissing her off now. Tyra snarled and stepped protectively in front of him. It made him feel safer. Tyra was _strong_.

"Giga Drain," his mother ordered, releasing her Vileplume.

"Tyra!" Silver shouted, reaching for Tyra's pokéball, but the Vileplume's vines had already wrapped around Tyra and wrenched her away from him. Then his mother was there, emboldened by her Pokémon having the upper hand, and she slapped Tyra's pokéball out of his hand.

"Suck the life out of it," she ordered her Pokémon sharply. "My son needs to learn a lesson in obedience."

"Stop it!" Silver shouted, trying to get to Tyra's pokéball. His mother grabbed him by the shoulders, holding him back. "You're killing her!"

"I know," his mother said coldly, twisting his hurt arm when he kept struggling. He screamed in pain.

"Ariana!" Archer said sharply. He was turning on the spot, watching something out of the observatory windows that surrounded them. A huge brown bird was circling the tower. Archer and Ariana turned to follow it, selecting new pokéballs. When their backs were turned, Silver tried to duck under his mother's arm to reach Tyra's pokéball. He froze when he caught sight of something else flying up to the window. It was huge and orange and blasted fire directly at his mother's Vileplume, shattering and melting the observatory windows in a plume of flame.

The Vileplume collapsed with a scream of pain, but the fire didn't bother Tyra too much. She staggered backwards, gasping, then snapped her powerful jaws and lunged at Silver's mother.

"Insolent creatures!" Ariana yelled, grabbing Silver's arm again and pulling him close to her. Tyra froze, unwilling to jump Ariana with Silver in the way.

"Let me GO!" Silver yelled angrily, trying to shake her off. He was hesitant to release his other Pokémon so close to the transmitter; all of them had been in a lot of pain on the way to the Lake of Rage. _Too much pain to be of any use,_ he told himself.

"You heard him, Ariana. You let him go. _Now._"

Saylee's Charizard had flown through the burned-out window, and Saylee herself was sitting on his back, now wearing a grey jacket over the Rocket uniform and a bloodstained bandage on her neck. Silver found himself feeling happy to see her and was pissed off at himself for it.

He wanted to hate Saylee. He was _supposed_ to. But… she'd never tried to kill his Pokémon, even though she was the enemy. She'd _saved_ Tyra. She was doing things all backwards! _Saylee_ was the bad guy, _she_ was the one who was supposed to be trying to hurt him and his Pokémon, not…

"Is that woman seriously using the kid as a human shield?" the brown bird said. He had returned through the burnt hole, and a man in a black t-shirt and brown trousers had gotten off. He was glaring over Silver's head at his mother.

"That's Ariana," Saylee said. "She's his mother." Saylee said Ariana's name as if it was a filthy word. The man's glare intensified.

"Oh, _man_, what a bitch," he complained. "And the blue-haired wank is Archer, right? The tosser who was torturing Lapras? Heard about that from Chaz. Dick move, pal, dick move."

"That's his MO," Saylee sighed. "Ariana, let Silver go. Let's duke it out, here and now, two on two. It's kind of like fighting fair. You may have heard of it."

"Don't you _dare_ tell me what to do," Ariana spat. "Don't you dare pretend that you care about my son! He's nothing to do with you!"

"Is that right?" Saylee said coldly.

"She's not wrong, though," Chaz said. "I doubt you care about him like she does. You're much nicer than that."

"Enough _talk_!" Archer snapped, releasing his Weezing. Ariana followed suit with her Arbok.

"_There_ we go," the man with Saylee said, releasing an Alakazam. "Finally, we get to the ass kicking!"

"About time, too," Saylee murmured, releasing her Togetic, Tobias. She was slumping on her Charizard's neck. She was painfully pale and clearly still sick and weak, but she'd come up and saved Tyra.

Silver was grateful that she had and wasn't mad at himself for that.

{}

Ariana's Arbok and Archer's Weezing were almost immediately incapacitated by Tobias and Adam's psychic attacks. Assured that they had the upper hand, Saylee turned her gaze to Tyra. The huge Feraligatr was growling low, her eyes fixed on Ariana's neck, but she didn't dare attack with Silver still struggling in his mother's arms. That was a mixed blessing. Saylee didn't like the bright red mark that was bruising on Silver's cheek, but neither did she want to see Ariana _dead_, especially not in front of Silver. She was still his mother, after all.

Your parents were your parents, whoever else they were.

The Arbok and Weezing collapsed into a wailing heap without landing a single hit on Adam or Tobias. Ariana replaced her Arbok with a Murkrow; Archer released a smaller version of the black, skeletal creature that had attacked Saylee at the warehouse. Saylee had read up on it since and knew what it was.

"It's a Houndour," Saylee warned Blue, releasing Mary. "It's Dark and Fire. Mary, Thunderpunch that Murkrow!"

"Sam!" Blue called, releasing his mighty Blastoise. He pointed to the Houndour, which was running towards them with its fangs bared. "Douse it."

The Murkrow dodged Mary's first punch but then took a powerful hit from her tail. The Houndour tried to attack Mary while she was distracted, but instead it got a blast of water in its side.

"Imbeciles!" Archer spat, releasing his Houndoom, the ferocious Pokémon that he'd left to guard the warehouse. It snarled viciously at the sight of Saylee and Chaz.

"Mary, keep away from it!" Saylee ordered. "If you're burned by a Houndoom—"

"—the pain never ends," the Houndoom growled, black fire dripping from his fangs.

"Archer!" Ariana called. Mary had moved to circle her, and Tobias and Adam were approaching her form the other side. Silver was still struggling to get out of her arms. "I don't have any more Pokémon!"

"What a nuisance…" Archer grumbled, pointing at Mary. "Get rid of them all, Helmut."

"Archer!" Ariana cried, horrified. When Helmut rounded on them, opening his mouth to blast fire, she ducked down, crouching over Silver. Sam's cannons clicked to face Helmut, but Archer stepped into her path.

"You sentimental pansies," he laughed when Sam hesitated. "That's quite a powerful Blastoise. Does it have the control to fire a water blast that wouldn't pulverize me on impact?"

"It's not Sam you should be worried about…" Saylee muttered, returning Chaz the second she realized what was looming towards them through the window behind Archer. She only fell four feet, but the impact jolted all of her injuries.

"Saylee!" Blue yelled, running to her. Helmut had swung his head to aim the fireball he'd built up at Saylee and Blue.

"Giving up, are you?" Archer cackled. "That won't be enough to save you! Helmut—"

"That just might," Blue said, pointing out of the remaining window.

A furious red face smashed through the glass, glaring directly at the radio transmitter in the middle of the room. Archer and Helmut were both in the way.

Blue managed to haul himself and Saylee onto Sam's back just before the hydro pump of an enraged Gyarados swept the room.

Saylee noted with relief that Adam had erected a psychic shield that was effectively protecting him, Tobias, Mary, Ariana and Silver. It was the last thing she remembered before she finally blacked out.

{}

{}

_I had my last performance exam on Monday, so I'm officially DONE with second year! In celebration, have a double-post! :D_


	27. Chapter 26

_Pokémon: 20 Deaths: 2_

Silver made himself watch as they took his mother away in handcuffs with the rest of Team Rocket. He told himself that he didn't care, that she'd tried to kill Tyra and was getting what she deserved.

"Where are we going now?" Mag asked nervously as Silver backed down an alleyway across the road from the police station. He turned and stalked past the entrances to the apartment blocks. He headed for the fence at the end with the bicycles locked to it, trying to figure out how to climb over it with his busted arm. He had no idea where he was going to go, only that he didn't want to be _here_ anymore. _I just want to go _home, _but how the hell do I do that now? Where the hell _do_ I go…?_

Somebody grabbed him by the back of his jumper just as he reached his right arm up to grab the fence.

"Are you part Abra, kid? Because I've heard that you're pretty good at a disappearing act."

It was him, the man with the spiky brown hair who'd come up the tower with Saylee. Silver had last seen him carrying her to the hospital. "What're you doing here?" Silver demanded. Mag sparked threateningly, ready to defend his trainer. "Let me GO!"

"Fine," the man said, letting him go. "Saylee's in hospital. Blacked out from exhaustion. Moron never did know her own limits. She'll be fine so long as they can get her to stay in one place for a couple of weeks, although that might take an act of Mew."

"What makes you think I care?" Silver spat.

"Well, you didn't run off when I let you go," the guy said, walking off. "Come on, brat. I got a pal named Bill who has family here. That sucker's got family everywhere… anyway, they'll put us up for a couple of nights."

"What makes you think I want to go with you?!" Silver shouted.

"Where else are you going to go?" the man asked sharply. "If this was Kanto you'd be out in the wilds on your own. Here in Johto, I hear they'll take you away to a children's home with a bunch of other orphan kids, which you effectively are with your mum in jail and your dad AWOL. Not a bad deal, really. Free food and a bed until you're sixteen. I mean, even if your dad does surface, he's gonna get arrested, although I don't think he's gonna reappear. That signal was going for nearly twenty-four hours. Sorry, kid, but if he was gonna be here, he'd be here by now."

"I don't care," Silver said sullenly. "I don't need him."

"No, you know what you need? A bath." The man wrinkled his nose. "Have you _smelled_ yourself, kid? You need to talk to Saylee, too, but that can wait. Until then, hi, my name's Blue and you're not leaving my sight."

"Says who?" Silver demanded.

"Says the fact that you'd rather have a family than live in an orphanage," Blue said, watching Silver closely.

"How does he know that?" Mag whispered to Silver.

"Shut up, Mag," Silver hissed, glaring at Blue.

Blue rolled his eyes. "Look… have you seen this before?" he said, pulling a photograph out of his pocket.

"Yes," Silver said sullenly, glancing only briefly at the photograph. "It's Dad a long time ago, and his family from before. At least, that's what _he_ said."

"Right," Blue said, nodding grimly as he looked at the photo himself. "If you want a home and family, you know they're your best shot?"

"Whatever." Silver felt a little surge of hope at the word _home_ and tried to stamp it down. Even if that woman was still alive, what would she want with a filthy little thief of a stepson?

He scowled as his stomach rumbled. Mag floated closer to him, looking concerned. _Shut up, stomach! I don't care if I haven't eaten in two days! I'm not gonna look _weak_ in front of this smug bastard_!

"Yeah, I know _that_ feeling," Blue said, nodding at Silver. "If you're going to make another run for it, at least box clever and wait until after the free food."

"…Fine." Free food _was_ too tempting to pass up, and he could always make a run for it when they fell asleep. He could easily stay awake longer than a bunch of wimps.

{}

"Much quieter when he's asleep, isn't he?" Bill commented, glancing at Silver over his computer screen. He'd taken all of the kid's rude comments about "having a melted face" and being a cripple with good grace, all things considered.

"Sorry about his rotten mouth," Blue said, pulling his coat on. "And for eating all of your food." The kid had eaten like he'd never seen food before, but they hadn't been able to make him take a bath.

"Don't worry about it," Bill said, rapidly typing one-handedly. "I guess the kid's been through a lot. What Kanto kid hasn't? Why do you care about this one, out of interest?"

"I don't," Blue said shortly, "but Saylee does. Adam's around here somewhere in case the kid wakes up and tries to bolt again, although I don't know that he will. I'd better go find Gary."

"See you," Bill called as Blue left.

The streets of Goldenrod were as wet as if there had been a heavy rainfall. Gabriel, the mutated Gyarados that Saylee had captured at the Lake of Rage, had gone feral when Vera had released him and he'd heard the radio signal. He'd crushed the game corner on the way to the radio tower, and Blue counted himself lucky that he hadn't smashed the damn tower down too. Vera had returned him before he could. She'd brought a lot of the Pokémon that Saylee had picked up and sent to her instead of putting on her team. Quite a number of them, including a large Koffing, had gone utterly batshit at the sight of Team Rocket. Apparently, Vera had been telling them stories about what happened to Pokémon that belonged to Team Rocket.

One of them was a Staryu that had been killed in the street fighting, its core gem utterly smashed. Blue didn't want to have to tell Saylee about that, but he figured that he should, sooner or later. He'd rather be the one to tell her himself, anyway.

He spotted Vera, sitting on a bench and looking very intimidated at the people arguing around her. A pink-haired girl was shouting tearfully at a man with blue hair. Her shouting was mingling with the arguing of a beefy middle-aged man and a tall old man with while hair. A slim girl with long brown hair was blushing and stuttering and couldn't get a word in edgewise.

"Why on earth were you sitting at the back of your club and crying?" the blue-haired man was asking. He sounded terribly exasperated.

"I was scared," the pink-haired girl whimpered in a high, childish voice.

"_Scared_? I saw your Miltank bowl down six Rockets when you finally did come out! When the fighting was all but _over_, I might add!"

"It wasn't!" she insisted. "Besides, _Bugsy_ ran away!"

"Once everyone was arrested," the brunette cut in softly. "Umm… he said he, um, didn't want to hang around for the cleanup, if that's, um, alright…"

"What're you so shy for, girl?" the beefy man laughed, slapping her on the back. Blue would have expected the girl to be knocked over, but she only stumbled a little. "Saw you and your mighty Steelix taking men down left and right!"

"That thing was _yours_?" Blue blurted out. He'd seen it, a tremendous Onix made of metal, but he'd never have expected its owner to be this shy little woman.

"Yes, he is…" the brunette said, turning bright red in embarrassment. "Um, weren't you…? I mean, I saw you taking Lyra to the hospital…"

It took Blue a moment to realize that she meant Saylee. Of course, she'd taken on a fake name, hadn't she, to avoid Team Rocket's notice… _fat lot of good that did, in the end._ "I'm Blue. She's an old friend of mine from Kanto."

"Jasmine," the girl said shyly. "My, um, my father owns a forge and shipworks in Olivine. I'm the, uh, the best trainer there." She blushed more vividly. "This is Falkner, he's, um, the master of a flight dojo in Violet, and, um, this is Whitney, she, um, runs a Pokémon club here in Goldenrod, and Chuck, he's a very, um, famous warrior in Cianwood, and, um, Master Pryce of Mahogany…"

"If we could find where Morty ran off to, and if Bugsy hadn't already left," Falkner said, "you'd be talking to seven of the strongest trainers in Johto."

"That's nice." They reminded Blue somewhat of the six major gang and clan leaders in Kanto. All very powerful in their own specialized way, but they all had their own weaknesses. Erika wilted on a hot day, Misty couldn't handle electricity at all, and Brock passed out if you spat at him. It was impossible to have _no_ weaknesses, but Blue believed in variability rather than focusing on one type, so he felt that he covered his bases better than most. That was why he was _the_ best trainer in Kanto.

At least, as long as Saylee was in Johto…

"I have heard that this young lady is an excellent trainer," Pryce said. He looked even older than Blue's grandfather, but he stood straight and tall and gave the impression that he could kick your ass even without his Pokémon's assistance, thank you very much. "I should like to challenge her someday to see her strength for myself. She is responsible for the safety of my wife, eldest son and his family." He turned back to Chuck. "As I was saying: a manhunt is pointless. Giovanni will not be in Johto now. If he was and heard that radio broadcast, he will have fled. There are plenty of places to where he might have gone: Sinnoh to the north, Hoenn to the south across the sea, the deserts of Orre to the distant west…"

"I think a police search will be necessary on general principle," Falkner said. "Sorry, Pryce. I know your personal insight should make you a better judge of Giovanni's movements, but if you don't mind my saying so, your personal connection makes your input… not entirely trustworthy…"

"I dunno, he sounds pretty on the nose about Giovanni and his tendency to always have an escape plan," Blue said. "Do you know him?"

"Once, _before_, I think I must have known him rather well," Pryce said dryly. "I have met him often since… you see, he is my younger son."

Blue did a double-take. "Seriously?" he said in surprise. Life just _had_ to get more complicated…

Pryce nodded. "Well, our old photographs and my wife's diaries do suggest that. He does have my wife's eyes. I have to wonder when it was that he dug into the old hideout underneath the shop, but it appears to have been functioning as a criminal hideout for a couple of decades…"

"So, can I just confirm… it's definitely a young Giovanni in this photo?" Blue said, holding up the photograph in question. Pryce nodded.

"Yes, it is," he said, peering curiously at the picture. "Hmm. Where did you obtain this?"

"From his place in Kanto," Blue said. "We think it's him and his wife and son from before."

"We have an old letter from him before, saying that he was sending his wife and young son to us in Johto because the fighting in Kanto was growing so dangerous," Pryce said thoughtfully. "But do you know, this is the first photo that I have seen of them. They never arrived. Of course, then travel into Kanto was banned because of the amount of poison in the air and water… it was said to be too dangerous. In fact, the reports were that no living thing bar a few poison-types still remained in Kanto. I'm rather surprised to see a citizen of Kanto _alive_, let alone in such healthy shape, truth be told." He nodded to Blue."

"Yeah," Whitey sniffled. "I heard everyone was dead, or, y'know, deformed. _Mutated_. You look _normal._"

"I think your standards of normal and mine probably differ," Blue said, pocketing the photo. "What are you doing now, Vera?"

"I need to apologize to Lyra for bringing her Pokémon in," Vera said sorrowfully. "It got Selene killed. I didn't mean for that to happen, but they wanted to help her… and so did I." She sighed. "I was hoping to atone a little more… but now I just have all the more to atone for."

"You bet your ass you do," Blue said. "Give her a couple of days, though. Have any of you seen an Arcanine around here?"

{}

Somebody had affixed Saylee's dreamcatcher to the ceiling. When she woke up, performed the automatic grope for her glasses and put them on, Pedro's feather was the first thing she saw.

Mary and Tobias were lying at the foot of her bed, sound asleep. In fact, all of her Pokémon were present and snoozing. Carrie and Hernan were sitting against the foot of her bed, asleep with Carrie's head against Hernan's chest. Nider was sitting against one wall, curled up with his tail wrapped around himself. Chip was stretched out next to her bed, blowing smoke rings in his sleep. The window was open, but there wasn't a draft because Chaz was sleeping with his head on the sill, gently breathing hot air into the room. He really had gotten too big to be inside, like he had last year, when Saylee had been in a hospital bed on Knot Island.

Saylee was glad that they were still asleep. When they woke up, she'd have to tell them about the photograph that Blue had found, and she still didn't quite comprehend it herself.

She was both relieved and upset that Giovanni had never appeared at the Radio Tower. She had no idea what she'd say to him, if anything. She'd definitely want to punch him. Applying the heel of her hand to his nose with all of the force she could muster might help her feel better.

She held her arm up, punching into the air, and then uncurled her fingers and reached towards the dreamcatcher. Her arm felt as heavy as lead but was as pale as a Meowth's fur, aside from the sore black bruises on her wrist where Proton had grabbed her. She slowly noticed other, lighter bruises patching her arm. The dreamcatcher was hung just low enough for her fingers to brush the charred feather. She let her arm drop again. It was too tiring to hold it up. She felt exhausted, emotionally and physically. When was the last time she'd rested, really _rested_, not just blacked out? Was it just after she'd talked to Eusine? It felt like a million years ago, but it couldn't have been more than a week…

She lay back on her pillows. The cut on her throat hurt whenever she moved her head. Maybe she just needed to sleep a while longer…

It felt like she'd only blinked, but when she opened her eyes again, daylight was streaming in the window, and her Pokémon were awake and chatting to one another. Outside of the window she could see Hernan working with Mary on her thunderpunch, with Chaz and Sam commentating and Nider and Gary heckling. Carrie and Tobias were sitting on the windowsill and cheering them on. Georgia and Chip were in the room, talking about how scary Gabriel was. Chip was the first to notice that Saylee was awake.

"Lee!" he said, crouching next to her bed. "You're awake!"

"You look big enough to carry me now," Saylee mumbled, still getting used to his huge Typhlosion form. There had been so much going on in the past few days… "It was the other way around, back when we left New Bark…"

"That was bein' but a couple o' months ago," Chip said. "It's been fair busy since then, eh?"

"'Ow you feelin', moy love?" Georgia said, ambling over. Her evolved form was a little jarring too, for different reasons. She wasn't yet much larger than a Graveller, and she was the same general shape, but the way that her Golem shell had cracked and malformed around her extraneous arms…

"Just a bit tired…" Saylee said. "What about you, Georgia? Does it hurt?"

"Tch, t'ain't nothin'," Georgia said, waving all four arms. "Oi know it looks bad, but oi swear, it feels just foine. Don't moind it, really, oi loike 'avin' four arms. Much 'andier!"

Saylee couldn't help laughing at the terrible pun. She wondered vaguely if she'd been given some pain medication; her throat didn't hurt at all, and she was feeling a little fuzzy and loopy.

"Guys!" Chip called out of the window. "Lee's up!"

Tobias and Carrie reached her first, followed by Hernan and Mary vaulting through the window. Tobias returned Nider into his pokéball and then rereleased him into the room. Chaz stuck his head through the window, his neck long enough for him to reach Saylee's bedside. Saylee waved off all questions about how she was feeling and asked Mary how her thunderpunch was coming along. "Hernan can teach anyone to throw a great punch," she said, rubbing her knuckles.

"I thought you'd be up by now."

"Of course you did, Morty," Saylee said, looking up at the blond man who was peering around the door. "Come on in. How are you?"

"Very well, thank you," Morty said, sitting in the visitor chair. "I am glad to see that you and your Pokémon made it out alright. Your friend Vera will be pleased to hear it, Saylee."

_My _friend_ Vera… _"You knew I was lying?" Saylee said warily.

"My powers tend towards premonition, and I'm not a talented mind reader," Morty said with a shrug, "but I can tell the difference between truth and falsehood. However… I could tell that, whatever your reasons for lying were, they were just as important to you as my quest to be worthy of Ho-oh is to me, or Eusine's desire to meet Suicune is to him. You weren't wrong to do it," he added. "The Rockets have had spies in Johto for years. I rooted out several that hid during the attack by pretending to be frightened citizens. There were even more hiding in Ecruteak, including one among the monks in the temple itself!" He looked utterly revolted. "Once I set my sights on finding Rocket spies, it was almost frightening to realize how many there are… actually, I'm leaving just now to go find the spies in other cities. I know they're there, laying low. I just wanted to visit first."

"Thanks," Saylee said gratefully. "It's good to see you. Oh, Carrie, Hernan, Chaz, have you met Morty?"

"He's a ghost master!" Tobias said to his mother.

Carrie frowned. "You don't manipulate dead souls to fight for you, do you?" she demanded.

Morty shook his head. "Not against Team Rocket," he promised. "Their souls are too dark, corrupted… it wasn't necessary for me to bring Pokémon, in any case. The order I was raised with uses martial arts as a form of meditation, but they also work very well for the purpose of dislocating shoulders."

"You fought _us_ wi' ghosts, though," Mary pointed out.

Morty nodded. "I see to the desires of restless spirits who cannot pass until they are granted," Morty said. "Some continue to long for battle, as an outlet for the powerful negative emotions that hold them back. Do you remember Gavril? He went to rest as a result of our battle. I thank you for that."

"Spirits who _want_ to fight are rarer in Kanto," Carrie commented. "I suppose they have all long since had their fill of fighting…"

"You said you're good at finding things?" Chaz asked. Morty nodded.

"About what you said before," Saylee asked, "about Red…"

"The future is never precisely fixed," Morty warned her. "Contrary to popular belief, some of my visions do turn out wrong. But I still see you and Red in the snow. And…" he glanced out of the door. "The young man who is on his way here as we speak."

"Blue," Saylee said. It relieved her somewhat to know that he was coming over. She would have to tell her Pokémon, and tell them soon, probably as soon as Morty had left. Blue already knew, and _he_ didn't hate her for it. For plenty of other things, maybe, but not for that. "What about what you said about Silver?"

"He's on his way too," Morty said, bowing to her and her Pokémon. "I'd better go. Eusine gets so impatient… I hope you get well soon."

"Thanks for visiting," Saylee said as he left.

"Lee?" Chip asked. "What was he sayin' about Silver? I forget…"

"There's something I need to tell you guys," Saylee said, a little shakily. Nothing had ever scared her quite like this. It seemed like it wouldn't quite be real until she said the words. "Something I only found out when… well, Blue found it out, I just… confirmed it. I'll tell you when he gets here, I think he's got the photograph…"

"Well, he's comin' anyway," Nider said. "Why's he bringin' that stupid kid?"

"Because it's about Giovanni," Saylee said, "so I have to tell him too."

Blue arrived a couple of minutes later, dragging Silver by the arm. His Magneton was, as ever, floating at his shoulder. The kid looked sullen and like he didn't want to be there, which was more or less his default expression. "Wow, you're still in hospital?" Blue said, sitting Silver down on the chair that Morty had recently vacated and leaning against the wall behind it. Silver immediately began glaring at everyone in the room. "Would've expected you to be halfway to Hoenn by now."

"Ha bloody ha." Saylee looked at Silver and tried to muster up a smile. "Hi, Silver. I'm surprised to see _you_ here…"

"Not like I _wanted_ to come," Silver muttered. "This stupid bastard with the stupid hair _made_ me."

"Leave my hair out of this, ginge," Blue said. "Anyway, I got him to hang around the same way I caught Pete and Rick: food. Works like a charm. I figured you needed to talk to him." He glanced at her Pokémon, who were watching the humans' conversation curiously. "Did you tell them yet?"

Saylee shook her head. "I only want to try to explain it once," she said. A pain was rising in her throat that wasn't coming from the cut on her neck. "Do you still have the photo?"

"Yeah." Blue was unusually grave as he took the photo out of his jacket pocket and handed it to Saylee. She unfolded it, staring intently at the faces, but they hadn't changed. She hadn't imagined anything. She could feel Silver's bright red eyes boring into her.

"You said that you'd seen this photo before, right?" Saylee said, showing it to Silver.

"Yeah, Dad said it was his family from before that he never found," Silver said with a scowl. "Bet he didn't even _look_."

"I ran into… someone else who knew Giovanni before," Blue said. "The guy in the photo's definitely him."

"Yeah," Saylee said, holding the photo up for her Pokémon to see. "And I know who the woman is, as well."

"That's your mother!" Chaz blurted out. "That's…" he looked at Carrie, Hernan and Tobias. "That's Johanna, isn't it?"

"It… it is…" Carrie said, staring up at Saylee. "Saylee…"

"Why would Lee's mum be in a picture with the Rocket boss?" Nider asked, confused. For the rest of the Pokémon, though, the shoe had dropped, and their shocked expressions were too much for Saylee. She had to look away from them and instead looked at Silver. The red hair clearly came from his mother, but his eyes weren't quite the right shade. Why hadn't Saylee realized it before, why those bright red eyes seemed familiar?

"Don't you get it?" Saylee said bitterly. "Giovanni's wife and son from before are my mother and my brother Red! Do you get what that means?"

"Lee…" Tobias said. Saylee started to cry, tears rolling down her cheeks as the lump in her throat intensified.

"It means that Silver's my little brother," she said thickly, "my little half-brother. And our father is Giovanni!"

Her throat hurt so much that she could barely breathe. She couldn't look at them anymore, not her Pokémon's horror, nor the shocked expression on Silver's face. She pulled her glasses off and pressed a hand over her eyes to stem the tears, but she couldn't, she just couldn't. Sitting in the Radio Tower with Blue, wearing a borrowed Rocket uniform and staring at the photo, had all felt surreal. She'd just been too fogged with exhaustion and battle adrenaline to really take it in. She was still tired and her brain was still in something of a fog, but finally saying it, telling her Pokémon, made it finally feel real.

"You?! You're my _sister_?! A worthless, snivelling, _weak—_" Silver stammered through a few more insults, before just giving a wordless cry of frustration. Saylee heard the chair hit the floor and the door slam.

"Adam, keep an eye on him, can you?" Blue muttered. There was the gentle noise of the chair being righted and a large, warm hand on her shoulder. "Saylee… I thought about burning that photo, y'know. Forgetting it ever existed…"

For that moment, from the bottom of her heard, Saylee wished fiercely that he had. She felt like she had in the hidden war room, her world turned upside-down by something that she could never un-know. Let her father have been a mystery forever…

A glow shone through her tightly closed eyes, and something warm settled on her lap. She took her hand away from her eyes, and though the world was more blurred than ever through her tears, she could make out Tobias sitting on her lap.

"The stories said Togetic can bring happiness to good people," he said, fluttering up to hug her, "so I thought I'd try it." The lump in her throat began to melt under something warm.

"You're not your dad, Saylee," Chaz said gently, nudging her arm. "Any more than you're the humans who worked in the bunkers under the mountain."

"I'm thinkin' you _couldn't_ be like 'im," Chip added. "Not ever."

"Whit a bastart," Mary opined. "Abandonin' his flock like that! He's getting' a right zappin' if I ever see 'im!"

"You don't even look like this guy," Nider said, peering at the photo. "Or anything like that stupid kid…"

"Leave off Silver," Georgia said, giving him a two-handed thump. "It's got t'be froightnin' for him too, what with all that's been goin' on…"

"He's been convinced that Saylee is his enemy, after all," Hernan pointed out. "And he's spent his whole life knowing what his parents are…"

"And loving them anyway because they're his parents," Carrie sighed sadly. She patted Saylee's arm. "At least you don't have any of that conflict to deal with, right?"

Saylee shook her head. "I don't know… when I was a kid, I always imagined that if I had a dad, he'd be Red all grown up, the kind of guy who'd look after everyone and have lots of powerful Pokémon that he cared for a lot. It wasn't something that I thought about that much, though… I think it was a question that meant more to Mum than me, really." She sucked in a breath sharply. "Mum…"

"I told her first," Blue said quickly. "Thought she had a right to know. She didn't say a thing about it for days, then she threw her ring into a river and never told anyone else why. If it upset her, she didn't let anyone see…"

"She never does," Saylee said guiltily._ Next time I go home, she's getting the biggest hug in the entire world._

"Anyway, day after she chucked the ring she was selling lunch to miners up at Pewter, same as ever," Blue continued, "and there was this guy there from Sinnoh about her age flirting with her. She started flirting right back and now she's got a boyfriend."

"So I heard," Saylee sniffed, finally managing to bring up a little smile. "I'm glad… I guess she needed that kind of closure. I'm glad you didn't burn it, Blue," she added a little awkwardly, tipping her head to the side to hug his hand against her shoulder. "Thank you."

"Are you alroight, moy love?" Georgia asked.

"No," Saylee said, "but I'm sure, in time…" she let Blue's hand go and hugged Tobias. "I do feel a little better, Toby. Thank you." She looked around her Pokémon, her nearest and dearest friends. "Thank you…"

{}

{}

_And thus I make canon to my fic a crack theory that has been bouncing around since the nineties: Giovanni is Red's father. I think it was the first crack theory I ever picked up, because thanks to Toy Story 2 referencing Star Wars, every kid my age was convinced that the bad guy had to be the main character's father. I remember everyone expecting Giovanni and Red to appear at the Radio Tower for a faceoff, and the mass disappointment when they didn't… if double battles had existed back then, we would have fully expected to double battle with Red against Giovanni and Proton XD_


	28. Chapter 27

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Silver, what's wrong?" Tyra asked. Silver had let them all out—her, Gareth, Mag, Siren and Zeb—and had been making them train in the park for a while in a focused, angry way, but now he was sitting on the ground with his head buried in his knees. He wouldn't say a word to any of them about what was wrong, why the rage that always boiled in him had finally bubbled over. "Silver, what happened? Is it Team Rocket? Your _mother_?" Tyra spat out the word like a filthy insult. It had been clear to Tyra as long as she'd known Silver that his mother treated him like a tool just as she did her Pokémon, albeit a more useful tool than them because he was a hook for the boss and a key to status and prestige for her… something that only worked with Giovanni around. Silver hadn't been able to see it that way because she was his _mother_, but Tyra was smart enough to read between the lines whenever he talked about her. Ariana had neglected and abused her son, and Tyra would never forget that the bitch had tried to _kill_ Tyra just to _discipline_ Silver. Tyra knew that Ariana was the reason that Silver would never show that he cared about his Pokémon. He _did_ care, all of them knew it. It showed through in little ways that he didn't know how to hide. But he was too scared of showing it, of being _weak_, of caring about something in case it left him.

He still cared about his parents. That wasn't weakness, in Tyra's opinion. Children of any species cared for their parents, and humans were children longer than most. No matter how strong he tried to be, Silver was just a child and they were his parents, and Tyra could never forgive them for abusing that. She would gladly have ripped Ariana's throat out in the Radio Tower and never felt a moment's guilt over it, if that wouldn't have upset Silver.

He was upset now, and Tyra couldn't stand it. She hated it when people were sad.

"What're you _crying_ for?" Gareth demanded.

"'M _not_," Silver said stubbornly. His voice was awfully thick for someone who wasn't crying.

"Nothing wrong with it, honey," Siren said, idly sharpening her claws. "I just wanna know, if, hypothetically, you _were_ crying, who, hypothetically, would be responsible for it. Because they probably deserve to get cut."

"Don't," Silver muttered. "It's not… it _can't_ be true, it just _can't_, it's another _lie…"_

"Tyra?"

Tyra glanced up and briefly bared her fangs at Chip to warn him to come no closer. "Well, look at you, big guy, all grown up. What're you doing here?"

"I was just wantin' t'be knowin' if you were doin' alright," Chip said awkwardly. "Her was nearly killin' you…"

"I'm fine," Tyra huffed. "Takes more than a flimsy little flower to kill me. Thanks for asking, now go away."

"I was wantin' t'be knowin' if himself's bein' alright, too," Chip said, nodding at Silver. "Lee's been cryin' a bit too. But we're still bein' her friends, and we were tellin' her so, so I'm thinkin' that'll be helpin' in the end. But her been worryin' about Silver too."

"I'm FINE!" Silver shouted, jumping to his feet. "Absolutely FINE! I don't CARE! Why should I?! I DON'T NEED HER!"

"I'm sure you're not," Chip said calmly. Tyra was secretly a little impressed. As a child, he'd been so timid that he'd run away from a Magikarp. He used to be frightened of Silver, she was sure. Perhaps the fact that he was four feet taller than the kid now helped. "You could be livin' out the rest o' your life without ever seein' or hearin' from Saylee or anybody ever, and neither of you'd be droppin' dead for lack. I'm askin' what you're _wantin'_, Silver."

"None of your business!" Silver shouted. "Tyra, if he doesn't go away, Surf him!"

"I'm warning you, Chip, I could really hurt you here," Tyra said, making the water in the nearby fountain surge warningly. "Go away, okay?"

"Lee's your sister, Silver," Chip said sharply. "I don't know if that be meanin' anythin' to you, but it's meanin' somethin' to _her_."

"She's _what_?" Zeb said, gaping even more than usual. "That girl with the stupid hat? Is he serious?"

"It's LIES!" Silver shouted, stamping his foot. "She's a LIAR! She's… she's BAD! She's the ENEMY! Tyra, get RID of him!"

Tyra hesitated to surf Chip. Instead, she spat a little water at him. He winced when it sizzled on his skin but didn't back down. Tyra would die a painful electrical death before admitting it, but she was really very impressed now.

"Your folks were tellin' you of that, I'm sure," Chip said stolidly. "She's not been wishin' you any harm, though. She was carin' about you even afore knowin' of bein' your sister. And she's been havin' a hard time dealin' with the knowin' of bein' the daughter of a twat the likes of Giovanni. I'm thinkin' all might go easier for her t'see somethin' good be comin' out of this. You too, maybe."

"Tyra, MAKE HIM GO A_WAY_!" Silver shouted furiously. He had pulled his injured arm out of his sling and clamped his hands over his ears, clenching his eyes shut.

"Chip, get out of here _now_," Tyra growled. Then she frowned. "Is it… true?"

Chip nodded. "'Tis."

"I'll talk to him," Tyra promised quietly, "so GO!" She fired a blast of water at him that deliberately missed by inches. Chip took the hint and hurried off.

"C'mon, Silver, calm down," Mag said. "It can't be that bad, can it?"

"I don't WANT her to be my sister!" Silver shouted. "I HATE her! She's the reason Dad left, she's the reason we had to leave that nice island and come _here_, she's the _bad guy…_ I don't want anything to _do_ with her… I want… I want…"

"Silver," Tyra said, licking his cheek, an affectionate gesture that he rarely allowed, "if there's one thing you _do_ want, that you've wanted as long as I've known you, it's to go home with your family. Right now, if it's true, that makes your family options your mother or Saylee. From what I've seen, only one of them has ever given a single shit about your happiness or welfare."

"She did that way before knowing she's…" Silver bit his lip, refusing to say it. "I don't get _why. _It's _stupid_."

"My old trainer used to call me stupid for wanting to be a fighter," Siren said, looking where Chip had left. "Stupid, in my opinion, is a word people use when they don't understand something and don't want to. I'd say it's a word that people like your parents apply to kindness."

"Are you guys on my side or not?" Silver demanded angrily.

"Silver, I'm on the side where you end up loved and whatever passes for happy with you," Tyra sighed.

"You could try it," Zeb suggested. "Just for a while, y'know? And if you hate it and still hate her, well, you're good at sneaking away."

{}

"He's coming back," Adam reported. Blue nodded. He wasn't exactly surprised, but he was relieved nevertheless.

Saylee had fallen asleep again. She had a lot of blood to replenish and a lot of healing to do, not all of it physical.

"Thanks for saving her," Chaz commented quietly. "From Proton…"

"Shouldn't have been in there herself," Chip mumbled. "One've us should've been there with her… or her should've waited…"

"Yeah, but if she'd been able to wait and let it lie," Blue sighed, "she wouldn't be _her_."

The door creaked open, and a skinny black Pokémon the size of a child peered into the room. Silver reluctantly followed it in, peering around the room with a look that suggested that he wasn't quite sure what he was doing there. His Magneton was, as ever, hovering over his shoulder.

"She fell asleep again," Blue said quietly, "so do me a favour and don't start shouting again, okay, kid?" he stood up and offered the kid his chair. Silver looked about to refuse it on principle, but his Magneton gave him a gentle push and he relented. He glared at Blue, refusing to look at Saylee at all.

"Look, kid, can you stop glaring at me like that?" Blue asked. Silver's glare just intensified. "Fine, then. Can I clear something up? I'm not doing this for you. Boohoo, kid with no parents, I've never seen that before. Plenty of kids in Kanto make it alright, with or without Pokémon, and you've got a cushy-looking children's home thing going on here in Johto. When my parents were killed, I didn't have that. The only family I've had since then are my sister and a guy who's _probably_ my grandfather." He looked sharply at Silver. "That makes them even more important to me. I mean, that's just me," he added, holding his hands up innocently. "I don't know if it means a damn thing to you, but it means something to Saylee. That's who I'm doing this for, okay?"

"Is she your girlfriend?" Silver asked, making a face. Blue coughed when all of Saylee's Pokémon immediately looked at him.

"She's my _best friend_," he said pointedly. "I haven't been the best friend to her, though. Fair's fair, neither has she all the time. Still, two wrongs don't make a right." Saylee was beginning to stir again. "Look, kid, one more thing. Don't ask her why she bothered to protect you before she even knew who you are. I honestly don't think she understands the question."

Tobias suddenly flitted over to Saylee's bedside table, grabbing her glasses. Blue looked over at Saylee to see that she'd opened her eyes and was picking at the bandage in her hand in confusion. When Tobias handed her glasses to her, she smiled and gave him a pat on the head.

"Thanks, Toby," she said, sitting up and looking around. "I didn't expect to see you come back, Silver… I'm glad you did, though."

The boy chewed his lip for a moment before blurting out, "I lied to you too. My name's not Silver."

"It's not?" his Pokémon said in surprise.

"I used a fake name when I ran away so Team Rocket wouldn't find me so easy… if they were even looking," he added bitterly.

"…Well, that explains why Vera didn't know anything when you asked her about a red-haired kid named Silver," Tobias pointed out.

"You two think alike," Blue said, looking between the half-siblings. "That is actually kind of disturbing."

"You couldn't even tell _us_ your real name?" Silver's black Pokémon demanded. Silver shook his head.

"Mum and Dad always said there's no need to tell Pokémon anything important…" he frowned. "I said lots of stuff to Tyra that I didn't need to. Shouldn't have…"

"Would you stop it with that kicked Pichu look?" Blue demanded. "You're not about to get in trouble for being less of a bastard to your Pokémon than your parents, ceez…"

"Silver, I know that, even now, they're still your parents…" Saylee began.

"Well, _duh_," Silver said. He was already visibly regretting everything he'd said since entering the room and retreating back into his shell.

"I just hope you can understand someday that they're not always right," Saylee said quickly. "Showing your Pokémon that you care doesn't make you weak."

"Says _you_," Silver muttered. His black Pokémon and Magneton exchanged looks.

"Considering that the last time we fought your father, we utterly _destroyed_ him," Carrie said pointedly. "I think Saylee knows what she's talking about."

"So, what is your real name anyway?" Silver's Magneton asked. "Could you tell us?"

"No," the boy said sullently. "It's a _stupid_ name."

"If you want, I can keep calling you Silver," Saylee offered. "As a nickname. What do you think?"

"Do what you want," Silver complained, getting to his feet. "C'mon, Siren. We're going."

"I guess that counts as progress with that kid," Blue sighed, watching him go. "What a piece of work."

"It was a long time before I heard him call any of his Pokémon except Tyra by name," Saylee said with a smile. "Anyway, it wasn't so long ago that you were complaining about weak Pokémon and useless loads."

"Touché," Blue muttered. "A fight's no place for weakness. Doesn't mean that there's no place for weakness at _all_, though. Not everyone's a fighter, and it's not like there's anything wrong with that."

"Y'think the wean'll be back?" Mary asked.

"Prob'ly," Chip said. "Tyra'll no doubt be makin' him."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere for a few weeks at least," Saylee sighed. "The doctors want me under observation until all of my wounds have healed and they're _certain_ that all of the venom's out of my system." She yawned hugely and looked around her Pokémon. "I know none of you really want to just sit in your pokéballs that whole time—" Chaz in particular shook his head vigorously, "— but you don't have to hang around with here the whole time. I'll probably be sleeping a lot just now."

"Damn right you are," Blue said, standing up. "You've got blood to replenish and wounds to heal, so you'd better get on that sleeping thing right now."

"Thought you weren't going to order me around anymore?" Saylee said dryly, yawning again.

"Just relaying the doctor's orders," Blue said. "We'll leave you alone so you can sleep."

"Sounds like a plan," Mary agreed. "'Mon, everyin, let's head oot tae the park. I hear there's a sports dome gone up, an' I want tae see what's gaun on there."

"We'll be comin' back t'be visitin' loads, though, 'kay?" Chip said. "We want t'be knowin' when you're feelin' better!"

"You'll be okay, won't you?" Carrie said, patting Saylee's hand. Saylee nodded, her eyes drooping closed.

"I will be," she promised. "You guys have fun and tell me what happens… okay…?" she yawned again. "It's all still a lot to take in… but maybe… after some sleep…"

After a few moments, Blue reached over and took off her glasses and put them on her bedside table. They'd dig into her nose in her sleep otherwise.

{}

"So how long are you all staying?" Tobias asked his parents excitedly.

"Have you missed us?" Carrie said, hugging him. "Don't worry. We've missed you too. We'll be here… well, I don't know how long."

"Ahhh, it'll be good tae relax a wee bit, now Team Rocket's in the jail," Mary said happily, stretching her stubby little arms. "Now Wendy an' Di've been avenged!"

"Mmm…" Georgia nodded, but she looked sad.

"Doesn't really make it feel any better, though, does it?" Carrie said gently. "They killed my mother. Destroying them… it was the right thing to do, to stop them killing anyone else. But it didn't bring my mother back, or fill the hole her death left in my life."

"Yeah… don't really make up for Diana bein' gone, does it?" Nider said morosely. "Did anythin' make you feel better?"

"My friends," Carrie said. "Chaz and Saylee and… the others… and Hernan and Tobias," Carrie said, taking Hernan's hand. "All that lives must die. As a grave guardian, I know that innately. Loss is inevitable, but that doesn't stop it hurting. Only time and love heal the wounds."

"Don't seem t'be helpin' her much," Chip said, watching Georgia stomp on morosely, seemingly sunk into her own thoughts.

"She was real close to Wendy," Tobias said sadly. "Dunno if anything'll help her for a while."

"No amount of pretty words makes grief go away," Blue said. "You said it yourself, Carrie; time's important. Anyway, so far it looks like you guys have the time to mourn, since that looks to be all of Team Rocket right now, but the fact is that Giovanni's still out there somewhere, planning to rise again." He frowned. "Saylee'll probably need that time, too. She's gotten good at acting like she's alright, but… I can't imagine what it feels like. When my parents died, that was awful, but at least they were never absolute bastards…"

"I'm surprised you told her," Hernan said. "I'm glad you did… just surprised."

"I wish I hadn't," Blue said morosely. "But her mum definitely needed to know, and then she probably would have told Saylee sooner or later… and then she just would've gotten pissed off at me again for keeping things from her. She's never liked people keeping things from her just to make her feel better, even when she was a kid. Red was like that too, always losing patience with adults who kept things from kids just to make us feel better. Didn't like being made to feel stupid just because he was little."

"Yeah… for someone who been hidin' their identity, she was tellin' me the truth quick enough," Chip said. "An' the others, too, when Toby was showin' up."

"She'll want to go back and tell the truth to everyone in Johto too, now," Blue sighed. "I'm surprised she could bring herself to lie at all…"

"Morty said that there have been Rocket spies all over Johto that would've gone after her straight away if she'd been going with her real name and Pokémon," Tobias said. "She had to."

"I mean, man, if they tried to kill her soon as they knew who she was…" Nider said, shaking his head. "Damn cool that you and your team saved her. Amazed that you didn't kill that Proton bastard. I think I woulda."

"I wanted to, trust me," Blue grumbled. "But… lying's one thing, killing another. It's not a line I want to cross ever again, for any reason."

"Again?" Mary asked in surprise. "You _killed_ someyin?"

"I was responsible for Paul's death," Blue said softly. "And Eliza's, even if it was by accident. So why the hell did that moron look so damn happy to see me…?"

"I'm gaunnae hazard a guess that it was 'cause of yous savin' 'er life," Mary said. "'Cause that would make _me_ pretty happy. Not dyin', ken?"

"You've got a point there," Blue sighed. "Well… at least that's all past now. So what's this Pokéathlon thing about, anyway?"

{}

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_It's that time of week again… are you excited about the X and Y news? I'm quite happy about the trainer customization. I've been wanting it for ages, even just a little, and hair and skin are a good place to start. All hail the first ethnically diverse Pokémon protagonists! Also, diagonal movements, goat riding and Fletchling, which is BLOODY ADORABLE! I've preordered X and I can't wait for it :D_


	29. Chapter 28

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Good morning, dear. Or afternoon, rather. Did you sleep well?"

Saylee scrabbled for her glasses. "Thank you," she muttered when someone pressed them into her hand. The first thing she noticed when she put them on was a dreamcatcher, and she stared at it for a moment, reorienting herself. Then she looked over at her visitor. "I slept very well, thanks. And you are…?"

It was an elderly lady, pale-skinned and white-haired. She had silver-rimmed glasses, tightly curled hair and a neat, calf-length white coat. She was sitting next to Saylee's hospital bed with a backpack sitting in her lap, peering over her glasses at Saylee. Her dark red eyes twinkled when she smiled. "My name's Helen Pryce, dear."

"Pryce… oh, are you related to Sir Arthur Pryce?" Saylee asked. "The ice master?"

"He's my husband, dear," Helen said, nodding. "Have you met him?"

Saylee shook her head. "I've only read about him… I researched some of the prominent trainers in Johto when I moved here."

"Looking for Team Rocket connections, dear?" Helen said. "Don't look so surprised, you're big news. 'Saylee the Kanto Spy', they're calling you on the news. You and your Pokémon invaded the Rocket base back home in Mahogany, too, didn't you? I was one of the hostages being held down there. I owe a lot to your Golem. Without her, we all would have died."

"I'm glad you're alright," Saylee said.

"I wish I could say the same for you, dear," Helen sighed, looking at Saylee's IV drip. "Well, I suppose it's lucky you're alive, anyway. Arthur will be pleased, too. He's been hoping to battle you since you drove out Team Rocket, you see. These days, he rarely gets to battle a trainer of high calibre!" She laughed. "Don't think his age will drag him down! Nothing else ever has!"

"I'd be excited to battle him when I'm out of this bed," Saylee said, scowling at her IV drip herself. "I understand that once you and the other hostages were freed, he kicked all the Team Rocket ass he could find."

"Language, dear," Helen said mildly, "but yes, that was so. He participated quite enthusiastically in the rounding up of those awful thugs here in Goldenrod too. Kudos to you for defeating the leaders, however, dear. Speaking of which… I understand that you've met my son Giovanni?"

"Your s—" Saylee's eyes widened and her jaw dropped a little as she stared at Helen Pryce. Scrambling for something to say, all she could think of was, "—so that's how Team Rocket knew about that underground hideout…"

"Gio must have had notes about it somewhere, or people still working down there, because nobody else in the town knew about it," Helen sighed. "Too bad Gio wasn't there. I don't approve of physical disciplining of children, so I must never have given him a good sound thumping as a child, but he's an adult so I'd certainly like to give him one now…"

"Join the club," Saylee said dryly.

"Must be a family trait," Helen said, smiling ruefully. "When Arthur and I came here to help deal with those awful Rockets and started asking after the young lady who rescued us in Mahogany before vanishing one evening, I met a nice young man who told me something interesting. Gio's been hiding my grandchildren from me!"

"Um, Silver, anyway," Saylee said. "I don't think he knew that… that I'm…"

"Still too hard to say, is it, dear?" Helen said sympathetically. "It's all right. Cursed memories… they've fooled around with everyone's lives. I mean, I have given birth to and raised three children, and I only met one of them at all about ten years ago. We didn't know if Gio was alive or dead; we only had photographs of him. Oh, and a letter. It said that things in Kanto were getting dangerous and he was sending his wife and son to Johto, but they never arrived… must have been on their way when whatever happened, happened."

_So that's why Mum and Red were at the docks in Vermillion_… "We didn't have anything… I only just found out that he's… my _father…_" the word tasted awful in her mouth, but she had to say it.

"It'll get easier to accept if you can say it," Helen said sympathetically. "Yes. Giovanni is your father, and my younger son. And you're my granddaughter. You've got a grandfather, aunts and uncles, and cousins too. Wyatt and Lucy are about your age, come to that."

"They are? Wow…" Saylee rubbed her eyes. "It's a lot to take in, but… I'm only just realizing that being… being Giovanni's daughter means more than, well, being Giovanni's daughter. I've never had any family except Mum and Red, and now…"

"I'm not going to pile everyone in here to meet you," Helen promised. "Take your time to get used to it. I promise that, to the best of my knowledge, nobody else in the family is a criminal psychopath."

"…Between Giovanni and Silver, I think I've already had the worst of new relatives," Saylee admitted. "I think I'd like to meet everyone. Eventually. Maybe not right now…" she yawned widely. "I just woke up, why am I still tired…"

"That happens when you're healing, dear," Helen said, patting Saylee's hand. "Tell you what. Arthur will want to visit you too, soon, but I'll tell everyone to hold off until you're out of hospital. You should come back to Mahogany when you're out, then you can meet your family."

"I'd like that," Saylee said, squeezing Helen's fingers. The old woman's hand was wrinkled and soft, and very warm.

"You ought to bring your mother and brothers, too," Helen continued. "I'd love to meet them. Are they in Kanto?"

"My Mum is, so it might be hard to get her out here safely…" Saylee said. "Silver's here, though. He's my younger half-brother. I have a full brother, Red… but he's been missing for a long while."

"Oh, no!" Helen gasped. "Oh, that's terrible. Have you any idea where he is?"

"East of Ecruteak, west of Kanto, that's all I know…" Saylee sighed. "But Morty had a vision. He said I'll find Red in the snow."

"Well, Arthur says it's to be a snowy winter, and he's never wrong when it comes to the cold…" Helen said, digging into the backpack. "If you're planning to go traipsing around in the snow, you ought to have these. I just finished them and I'd like you to have them. I've missed seventeen of your birthdays, anyway…" She handed a soft bundle of yellow wool to Saylee.

"Thank you!" Saylee said, unfolding it. Most of the wool was a long yellow scarf, but as she unwound it, a pair of lighter yellow gloves fell out, along with an orange wool hat. It had a bobble on top. Saylee blanked that out in favour of cuddling the scarf. "It's so warm! Is this Mareep wool?"

"Flareon fur," Helen said. "Wonderful stuff, isn't it?"

"Thank you so much," Saylee said, trying on the gloves. They were actually a little big on her, but warm and soft all the same. "This is wonderful. I really… thank you." She pressed the scarf to her face. Her eyes felt very, very hot. She was mortified to realize that she was crying. "I-I'm sorry, I don't know why…"

"Don't worry about it, dear," Helen said, patting her shoulder. "It's all been a bit much lately, I'm sure. Don't try to bottle it up. It'll do you good to let it out and have a good cry." Saylee could only nod helplessly, crying into her scarf.

"Sorry about that," she sniffed a while later, wiping her eyes off with the back of her hand. "…I do feel a little better, though."

"That's the way," Helen said, squeezing Saylee's shoulder. "A lot's happened recently. You gained some family, lost your poor Dragonair…"

Saylee nodded, feeling a lump rising in her throat again at the mention of Diana. "Diana… I promised I was going to take her home to Blackthorn…"

"You still can in a way, dear," Helen said. "We gave her remains a proper funeral, but we kept her horn and one of her pearls. You probably ought to take those back to Blackthorn so she can have a funeral in their style."

"Thank you," Saylee said, nodding and wiping her eyes again.

"Lee? Are you okay?"

Tobias was peering around the door at about head-height. Mary, Carrie and Hernan followed him in, looking in confusion at Helen.

"I'll leave you with your friends, dear," Helen said, zipping her backpack closed and standing up. "It's wonderful to meet you, and I expect I'll be back with Arthur quite soon. Do look after yourself until then."

"It's good to meet you, um…"

"Call me Helen until you're ready, dear." Helen smiled brightly at Saylee and left.

"Who was that, Saylee?" Carrie asked curiously.

"Her name's Helen," Saylee said, hugging the scarf, "and she's…"

"Hey, new stuff!" Nider said, stomping into the room. "What's this?" He picked up the orange hat, peering at the bobble. "Nice! I'm stealin' this!" He stuck the hat on top of his head, stretching it over the knobbly scales and smaller spikes. The orange hat clashing with his purple skin was so ugly, and seeing Nider in a bobble hat was so utterly ridiculous, that Saylee burst into hysterical laughter.

"Nider, ye cannae jus' nick Lee's stuff!" Mary chastised him.

"No… 's okay…" Saylee choked out, doubling up over her stomach. She desperately tried to get her laughter under control; it was starting to make her throat hurt. "Oh, wow… thank you, Nider. You can keep the hat. I needed that."

"So who was that woman?" Hernan asked suspiciously. "Was she upsetting you?"

"No, no," Saylee insisted. "I've just… a lot's happened lately. But y'know, not all of it's bad. After all, it looks like I have a granny now!"

{}

"Lyra! You're alive!"

"Hi, Ethan," Saylee said, putting down her book as the exuberant kid ran into the room. He was grinning as widely as ever and looked unaffected by his ordeal in Goldenrod. Marina was, as ever, in tow; she was taller than him now. "How are you?"

"We're okay, thanks to you and your boyfriend!" Ethan said happily. Saylee was glad that Blue wasn't in the room because that comment made her go red enough. She pointedly ignored her visiting Pokémon sniggering at her. "Thank you so much! I'm sorry you got hurt, though," he added guiltily.

"Not because of you," Saylee promised him. "So, Marina, how does it feel to be an Azumarill?"

"_Powerful_," Marina said happily. "And I can swim really really deep now!"

"Anyway, I wanted to give you something to say thank you," Ethan said, digging into his pockets. "I found it in the Underground. A Rocket tried to take it off me, that's how we wound up fighting. Here!" He held up something silver and shimmering. "Isn't it pretty?"

"It is," Saylee agreed, holding it up to the light. It was a long silver feather. It looked fragile and translucent, but felt very strong, as if Saylee couldn't tear it if she tried. It also seemed to glow slightly. When Saylee looked back at Ethan, she was startled to see his eyes had turned the same shade of silver.

"I'll put it up with your other feather for you," Ethan offered, climbing up to stand on Saylee's bed and affix the strange silver feather to her dreamcatcher for her. When he looked down, his eyes had returned to their usual brown colour. Had Saylee imagined it? "There!"

"That's very pretty," Marina agreed, watching the dreamcatcher spin slightly.

"Thank you," Saylee said, "now get down! My attending nurse will freak if she sees you standing on my bed in your shoes!"

"Oops!" Ethan hopped down and brushed some dirt off with his hand. "There! All clean!"

"That's very sweet of you, Ethan," Saylee said, looking at the silver feather. "Thank you. Now, you've not met Carrie, Hernan and Chaz before, have you?"

"It's nice to meet you," Ethan said politely. "Wow, you all look _tough_!"

"Tough as they come," Saylee told him. "We fought Team Rocket together. You know, Ethan, there's a secret that I haven't told you, but I can now that Team Rocket are all arrested. Want to know what it is?"

"A secret? Yeah!" Ethan said excitedly. "That sounds cool! What is it?"

"My names not Lyra," Saylee confessed. "I'm Saylee, and I'm… a spy from Kanto, here to stop Team Rocket!" It was an exaggeration, but it was cute to see the way the kid's eyes bugged out.

"You're a _real_ spy? Like on TV?" he said excitedly. "Wow! I just _knew_ you were cool! That's so _mental_!" Then he frowned sadly. "But with Team Rocket gone… are you going back to Kanto?"

"Not yet," Saylee promised. "I'll be here a while. Come visit me the next time you're visiting your grandparents, okay?"

"'Kay!" Ethan said happily.

"Ethan, your grandparents are waiting for you at the department store, remember?" Marina said.

"Oh, yeah! I'd better go!" Ethan said, rushing off. "Bye, Lyra! I mean, Saylee! Get well soon!"

"Is that kid a human or a Ponyta?" Hernan asked, watching Ethan run off.

"What's this?" Tobias said, flying up to peer at the shimmering silver feather.

"I have no idea," Saylee said. "Ethan found it. Apparently Team Rocket was trying to take it. I can't tell what it's from…"

"If they were trying to steal it, it's probably worth money," Chaz said, sniffing it. "Or it's from a rare Pokémon. Does the Pokédex have anything to say about it?"

"I don't know," Saylee said, pulling out her Pokédex and setting some search parameters. "Hmm… it's not quite the right colour for a Swanna or Wingull feather, and neither of them live in Kanto anyway…" she scrolled through some more options. "Actually, the closest colour match is… Lugia."

"Lugia the _sea god_ Lugia?" Mary said in surprise, staring at the feather. "Whit the hell's that daein' here?"

"I have no idea," Saylee said, thinking of Ethan's eyes briefly turning silver.

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_Special shout out to WyldClaw for being review number 100, and to all of the others who've read and reviewed thus far! Thank you so much! It means the world to me that people enjoy reading these stories as much as I like writing them :)_


	30. Chapter 29

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Are you _still_ in hospital?" Silver complained, hopping up onto the visitor chair. "How weak."

"Excuse me for not having a Pokémon healing factor," Saylee said, rubbing at the two smallest fingers of her right hand. They had been very stiff and hadn't moved normally since the Lake of Rage. "I'm surprised you're still in Goldenrod."

"'Course I am, the cripple's family feeds me," Silver said, juggling one of his pokéballs. Saylee snatched it away from him left-handedly, secretly proud of herself for managing to hold onto it even though she fumbled slightly.

"Silver, I want us to be able to get along as siblings," she said, "but I swear that the next time I hear you call Bill that, it will go very hard on you."

"Why should I be scared of you?" Silver said. "You won't hurt me." He reached out for his pokéball. "Now give Siren back."

Saylee transferred the pokéball to her injured right hand and held it away from him. When Silver leaned over to try and reach it, Saylee flicked his injured arm. Silver yelped in pain and leapt back, clutching his arm and staring at Saylee. Mag flew towards her, sparking, but Silver snatched him out of the air quickly.

"I will never really hurt you, Silver," Saylee said. "But I am not above disciplinary pinging. Now, Bill and his parents are being very kind to put up you and Blue while you're in Goldenrod, and extremely tolerant of your mouthing off. When people are nice to you, you ought to be nice back."

"I always got told that if someone's rude to you, you should give them a beating for it to show you're strong," Silver said, sitting back in a huff. "Nobody ever says I have to be _nice_."

"Team Rocket never told you to be nice," Saylee said. "I don't know if you've noticed, but they are not shining examples of humanity."

"And you are?" Silver snapped.

"I like to think I'm better than Team Rocket," Saylee said, handing Siren's pokéball back. "I'm sorry I hurt your arm. How is it feeling?"

"It's fine, it's just a little scrape," Silver muttered, looking down. Saylee caught the flash of pain on his face, but didn't say anything. It probably wasn't pain from his wounded arm.

"Silver, please promise me that you won't be rude to Bill," Saylee sighed. "He's very badly hurt, and the circumstances of his injury were very bad. His Clefairy died. If Tyra had died when you got that arm injury, how would you feel about people making fun of the scar on your arm?"

"I'd KILL them for that!" Silver shouted. "I wouldn't let _anyone_ get away with that!"

"Bill's much less angry than you are," Saylee said sadly. "But it hurts him just as much when you make fun of his injuries. Next time you want to call him a cripple, think about that, okay?"

"…why should I care about _his_ feelings?" Silver said, staring at his arm.

"You'd want him to care about yours if it was the other way around, wouldn't you?" Saylee told him. "It'd be a very cold world if nobody ever cared about anybody else's feelings. The kind of world that people like Ariana and Giovanni live in. I don't know about you, but I'm not interested in living in a world like that…"

"They're _weak_," Silver muttered. "_That's_ why I don't want to be like them. I'm not _weak_…"

"No, you're not," Saylee agreed. "If you don't care what anyone thinks, why are you so intent on proving that to everyone?"

"I _don't_ care! I'm _not_ weak!" Silver jumped to his feet. "Who cares about you? I'm out of here!" He stomped off towards the door.

"Silver," Saylee called after him. "Thanks for visiting!"

"You're welcome!" Mag said, flying after his trainer.

"Shut up, Mag!" Silver slammed the door behind him. Blue came in a few minutes later, staring over his shoulder.

"Man, that kid looked pissed off," he commented.

"Yeah, but just as long as he stops calling Bill a cripple…" Saylee glanced back at the door, but Blue was on his own. "So, how're all the Pokémon?"

"Hanging out at the Pokéathlon dome," Blue said with a shrug. "Some of the sports there are pretty intense, actually, for all that it sets itself up as a cheesy-ass games centre. How're you doing?"

"Feeling better," Saylee said, rubbing her throat. "My injuries feel better, too. You were the one who told… Mrs. Pryce about me, right?"

"Yeah, somebody pointed her to me when she was asking after you," Blue said. "Hope you don't mind. I thought it would be good for you to meet a relative who wasn't crazy."

"It was. Thank you." Saylee leaned over and squeezed Blue's hand. "Thank you so much, Blue. For everything."

"Don't worry about it." Blue frowned at her pale skin, the way the dark bruises on her wrists showed up even more lividly against it, the faintly red-stained bandages. "Why do you always have to do this to yourself, Saylee? Why do you always run off into this stuff yourself?"

"Someone has to," Saylee said, tensing herself for another argument.

"But it doesn't have to be you!"

"Actually, it just might."

Both of them stared sharply at the woman that had stepped into the hospital room. It was a geisha, hands held folded in front of her demurely. She was wearing a red kimono and a pink obi under a long black overcoat. "Who the hell are you?" Blue said in confusion.

"Don't you dare spout some cryptic junk and run off again," Saylee said warningly. "For once, can you speak straight and tell me what the hell you just said means?"

"Regardless of whether or not you believe it, this is the first time we've met since Ilex Forest, Saylee," the geisha said, closing the door behind her. "But I have heard about you from my sisters. You have begun to appear in our divinations, Saylee, ever since the day you first came to Ecruteak."

"Divinations? Are you a psychic or something?" Blue asked, frowning.

"Ella is," The woman said, drawing a pokéball out of the folds of her obi. "But it is irrelevant. Our divinations are of an ancient style, directed by flows of an arcane power in this world. We watch over those around whom these flows tangle. Until now, such tangles have formed almost exclusively around gods and avatars."

"Ava-whats?" Blue said, looking at Saylee. "Is this some super-secret women's guild conversation, or am I allowed to know what that means?"

"Wait, I think I heard about this from Eusine… it's a human destined to absorb one of the most powerful Pokémon in the world into their body," Saylee said with a frown. "Pokémon powerful enough to be regarded as gods. I met a guy who's hoping to become the avatar of Ho-oh—they think it's the god of rebirth."

"Wait… are you saying that _Saylee's_ destined to be an avatar?" Blue said, looking from the Geisha to Saylee. "I'd worry that doing that would get you sucked into even more trouble, but I'm not sure if that's actually possible."

"Your body is not destined to harbour a god," the Geisha said, shaking her head. "But those who are will be drawn to you, and you will defend them."

"Wait, no," Saylee said, shaking her head. "What does that mean?"

"It means that soon you will be able to see," the Geisha responded. "You will be able to see those who are destined to become avatars, and you will be driven to defend them. Like Silver."

"Are you trying to tell me," Saylee said with a frown, "that the only reason I keep running into Silver, the only reason I was ever worried about that stupid kid, is because I'm _destined_ to? Because I'm _born_ to? No, I'm sorry—"

"Oh, no," the Geisha interrupted. "As I said, the flows did not begin to tangle about you until you first came to Ecruteak. I don't doubt that you are a kind soul who merely sought to look out for a lost child—"

"And can't keep your nose out of trouble," Blue agreed. "Does sound like you."

"But in looking out for that child in the Burned Tower… at that time, in that place…" the Geisha continued. "Silver, though he did not realize it, was drawn to that place because of the Beasts sleeping underground. His presence awakened them. At that time, they awakened to see _you_ protecting them, and that brought you to the attention of a greater power."

"Are you saying that Silver's meant to be an avatar for one of those things?" Saylee asked sharply. "Suicune, Raikou, Entei…"

"He will be the master of all three, one day," the geisha said smoothly.

Blue whistled. "That angry little kid?" he said. "Tell me that's not any time soon, because that kid can barely handle himself and normal Pokémon, let alone anything _really_ powerful…"

"When his time comes, he will know what must be done," the geisha said placidly. "He will have to take on Ho-oh's power, because he has been chosen to do so. And I do hope that you will be there to guide him, Saylee. "

"Because it's what I'm _chosen_ to do?" Saylee asked, irritated by the woman's calm demeanour when talking about handing the powers of gods to damaged children.

"No, Saylee," the geisha said, smiling placidly. "Weren't you listening? You were not chosen. You _chose_. You chose to protect that child time and again. You chose to protect those others that needed protection. Each time that you chose to do so, each time that you succeed in doing so, the powers will be ever more drawn to you. Because you _can_ protect them. And every time you choose to do so, your powers will grow. Your ability to find them, to recognize them, to protect them." She shook her head gently. "You can still choose _not_ to. I'm sure you are not the only one. Go home, live quietly, let Silver and the other avatars go about their way and the powers will lose interest."

"I can't just leave Silver on his own, though," Saylee argued. "He's my little brother! He's got no other family, not now his mother's in jail and our—I can't abandon him!"

"You can," the geisha interjected. "You are physically capable of doing so. But you _won't_. I can see. And while you aren't chosen, your little half-brother _is_…" she stood up, bowed to them and left the room.

"Well, that was creepy as all hell," Blue said, looking at Saylee. He put his hand on hers in an unusually gentle gesture. "Are you… alright? That sounds like a lot to take in, on top of everything…"

"Suddenly, finding out about my relatives doesn't seem that bad," Saylee sighed. "I… don't know if I really buy all this 'avatar' stuff…" she couldn't help thinking of Ethan's silver-glazed eyes, or the way that Silver seemed to connect with Entei, Raikou and Suicune. "She's right. I'm not going to abandon Silver, and I'm not going to be able to keep myself out of trouble if I see it… I _have_ to…"

"But _not on your own_," Blue insisted, gripping her hand. "That weirdo was right, you really don't listen—"

"I know, she said there might be others," Saylee said, "but I haven't met any yet, so until then, who else is there?"

"There's me!" Blue shouted. "You're not the only one who gets to _choose_, okay? And you might be a protector, but sometimes you sure as hell need protecting. I happen to think that I'm quite a good trainer, believe it or not."

"You are," Saylee said, touching the bandages on her neck. "I…" she swallowed heavily. "I wanted to ask you to come with me. To Johto. But we started arguing again…" She shifted over on the bed. Blue took the hint and sat down next to her, leaning back against the headrest, not letting go of her hand. "Just like when I turned fifteen and I said I was going to leave. I really hoped that you'd want to come with me. We hadn't been apart for a single day of our lives before that, had we? Adults came and went, Red came and went, but you and I…" she sighed. "But you got so mad… I thought you hated me."

"I didn't want you to vanish like Red," Blue sighed. "And I was pissed off about you running off on your own… you never said you wanted me to come with you, how was I supposed to know?"

"You… I don't know," Saylee said, shaking her head. "We suck at this communication thing, don't we? I missed you a lot, travelling on my own, but then every time we ran into each other we just fought… I was really glad to see you in the Radio Tower, y'know. Not just because you saved my life. Suddenly, it just all seemed so much more _doable_. Team Rocket didn't feel like a threat anymore. I feel like if we travelled together, I could do anything."

"You can do it anyway," Blue grumbled.

"But I don't _feel_ like I can," Saylee said, leaning against his shoulder. "Not until I'm fighting with you. As in, on the same side, although sometimes proving you wrong is a good motivator…"

"Well, if that's all I'm good for…" Blue sighed. He rolled his eyes at her startled look. "Oh, come on, you and Red are always the heroes. You've both run off to fight Team Rocket on your own, saved cities, doing all that heroic shit, while I just tag along. That's what I'm _for_, I guess. You protect the gods, I protect the heroes."

"Funny," Saylee said, squeezing his hand, "you looked pretty bloody heroic when you got Proton off me. And back when you turned up to help me fight through Silph. That's proper hero timing, always turning up just in time…"

"Stop trying to make me sound like a good guy," Blue grumbled. "I'm not. You can't possibly have forgiven me for killing Eliza and Paul."

Saylee sucked in her breath sharply. "Eliza… I know you and Sam didn't mean to kill her," Saylee said softly. "Paul…" she took her hand out of his, looking away. "I know why you did it. I know you were trying to protect me. That… that doesn't make it okay. And I don't know if and when I'll be able to forgive you for it. But, Blue… you haven't forgiven yourself for it either, have you? That's why you're doing all this, right?"

"Oh, for…" Saylee glanced over to see Blue facepalming. "You can be pretty clever about Pokémon, but you're also a moron, you know that?"

"So you keep telling me," Saylee said, giving him a push. He swore as he rolled off the bed and thumped onto the floor. "What's your point?"

"My point is that yes, I still feel terrible about Eliza and Paul," Blue said, leaning up and peering at Saylee over the edge of the bed, "but I didn't haul my ass all the way out here on a guilt trip. I came for the same reason I do any stupid shit, like leaving Pallet or having Paul killed. I came because I care about you, moron."

"…forgive me for not getting that when you alternate between saving my life and killing my Pokémon," Saylee said, stomach clenching with something halfway between fear and happiness. "One minute you're telling me Giovanni's my father, then that I have a really nice granny who makes scarves."

"All true and relevant information," Blue insisted. "Sorry for not figuring out a way to tell you about your gran without bringing up your _dad_."

"That's not it, it's just…" Saylee ran her hands through her hair, trying to figure out how to articulate her thoughts. "Since before I was born, we moved around all the time. Even when we settled in Pallet, it's constantly been changing as we try to build, as things get destroyed, and we try again… in all that time, there've only been three constant, important people in my life." She held up three fingers. "Red, Mum, and you. But Red's gone, nobody knows where. Mum's…" she hesitated.

"She's not someone you can lean on," Blue said softly.

"I love Mum," Saylee insisted quickly. "And I know she loves Red and me… I can't count how often, when we were kids, she'd give up her own food so we could eat… but she spent so much of our travel searching for a husband that she couldn't be sure existed, as if finding him would make everything better. She pined endlessly. Since forever, Red's been the strong one…"

"And me?" Blue asked, standing up.

"I told you, you've always been there," Saylee said, fidgeting with her fingers rather than looking up at him. "You always made everyone smile. Even if it meant being a jerk, so long as it was funny…" she bit at her lip nervously. "You're the only dependable constant left in my life, and the past couple of years, you haven't been constant. You've been… I don't know. I don't know what to make of it. And I want to, I really do, but things get in the way… I have to find Red, and you…"

"I've got to protect Pallet and Viridian," Blue said. "I probably shouldn't be away from it for too long as it is. SG's covering for me, but wild Pokémon and the roaming gangs are still a problem…" he scratched his head and sighed. "Since you're a moron, I will say this flat out: you're important to me, Saylee. I don't like seeing you get hurt. REALLY don't like it. But sometimes, I don't get you at all. Sometimes, I don't know what to make of you either…" He shook his head and sat down heavily next to her. "Mostly, I really just wish I could make you a happier person."

Saylee put her hand over his where it rested on top of the sheet. "Nobody makes me happy like you do, Blue. Nobody makes me sad like you, either, but… either way, I don't know what I'd do without you."

"I'd rather be making you happy than sad," Blue said wryly.

She watched him for a moment, not sure how to respond, before smiling slightly.

"If you're up for it, I have something that could make us both happy."

Blue raised a curious eyebrow. "That would be?"

Saylee tugged on his sleeve a little, inviting him to lean closer, before kissing him. If it had seemed like a good idea at first, it had suddenly seemed even better when whatever surprise he'd felt in the beginning had quickly evaporated and he kissed her back.

"Lee! Did something good happen? You suddenly felt really really happy and—OOPS, SORRY!"

Blue and Saylee jerked apart in time to see Tobias whirl around and fly back out the door. "Toby!" Saylee called.

"Well, that was private for all of five seconds," Blue snorted, leaning back and putting his arm around her shoulder. "Good, though. Definitely a good idea. We need to do that again sometime." Saylee leaned against him with a little laugh.

"From the way some of my Pokémon talk, there will be exactly no surprise anyway," she said. "So, what now?"

"Just what we were saying, I guess," Blue said with a little shrug. "I'll go back to look after Pallet and Viridian over the winter. You'll go get to know your family. But now…"

"Now we know," Saylee said, working an arm around him. "Now we both know. And we still have time before winter comes."

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_*Flees screaming from attempts to write romance* I just got Fire Emblem: Awakening. I've never played an FE game before, so I've only just discovered how much I love this. I'm probably just going to copy down all the romantic support conversations as an alternative to trying to write anything remotely romantic…_


	31. Chapter 30

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

Saylee stared at the dreamcatcher, feeling her brain kick into gear. She spent so much time sleeping at the moment that her Pokémon mostly hung out at the Pokéathlon Dome or the park, yet she could feel someone watching her. She blinked at the two figures, probably human, sitting next to her bed, and then reached for her glasses.

"Arthur, dear, she's awake."

"_My _eyesight is perfectly fine, Helen."

"You're always so critical, Arthur."

Nervousness roiled in Saylee as she recognized Helen, the wrinkled old lady with the dark red eyes, Giovanni's mother, Saylee's grandmother. And the man next to her had to be Sir Arthur Pryce, Saylee's grandfather.

He was very tall and seemed even taller because of how straight and proud he sat. Despite his white hair, he didn't have as many wrinkles as Helen, just a few deep lines on a still-sharp face. He was an ice master, Saylee had heard, a fortnight and a million years ago, before she'd discovered that she had a family through her father.

Pryce was sitting with his arms crossed and an intent look focused on Saylee.

_Don't let them intimidate you. Stare them down._

"Nice to meet you," Saylee said, looking him firmly in the eye. He nodded and held his hand out for her to shake. For some reason, Saylee had expected his hand to be ice-cold, but it was humanly warm and had a grip that felt like it was making her bones creak. Saylee returned the grip as best she could.

"Your Pokémon rescued Helen and the others from Team Rocket," he said. "Was it because they were your relatives?"

"Um, no, it was because they were hostages," Saylee replied. "I didn't know we were related until a couple of days ago. I'm still getting the hang of it…"

"I owe you a debt of gratitude, in any case," Pryce said with a surprisingly warm smile. "I understand that Gio was not involved with Rocket's latest shenanigans, but nevertheless it's his organization and I'd disown the little bastard if it didn't also mean severing links to a fine granddaughter, and a couple of grandsons too, I understand."

"Thank you," Saylee said, immeasurably touched. "I… wow. I have _grandparents_. This is still pretty new to me..."

"Don't worry, dear, we're quite experienced at having grandchildren," Helen said warmly. "When you're ready, you've cousins to meet. A couple of them are about your age, I think I mentioned..."

"Y…yeah…" Saylee knew what cousins were—Janine had several—but most people of her age and older in Kanto barely knew who their _siblings _were, let alone any family beyond that. "I wish my brother was here… my big brother Red's been missing for a while," she explained. "About three years. A psychic in Kanto told me that he was to the west, and Morty said that he was to the east and that I'd find him in snow…"

"What was it you said before? East of Johto, west of Kanto… you don't suppose it could be Blackthorn, do you?" Helen said thoughtfully. "They're so high up that it's snowy quite a bit of the year. Is Red a good trainer, dear? Lots of powerful trainers wind up in Blackthorn."

"He's the best," Saylee said firmly.

"Hmm… problem is, the only way into the city is through the Ice Path," Pryce mused. "And it ices over _entirely_ in the winter. It'll be too dangerous to enter within a week, you mark my words."

"When it comes to ice, dear, you do know best," Helen agreed.

"A _week_?" Saylee said, sitting up in a panic. "If I don't go now, I'll miss my chance—!"

"Stay right where you are, young lady!" Pryce barked sharply. "I hear you're a clever girl, far too clever to be acting like an idiot!" Saylee lay back down, almost physically pushed by the strength of his glare. "Blackthorn is snowy for ten months a year due to how high in the mountains the damned place is. When the Ice Path melts enough to be passable in late February, it'll still be snowy in Blackthorn. The dragon masters settled there because they believed the cold would make their dragons stronger."

"Dragons…?" Saylee was mortified to feel hot tears welling up and tried to rub them away. "I-I'm sorry… my Dragonair, Diana… I wish I could have taken her there… she was killed in a Rocket trap…"

"The Dragonair that we found in the wreckage of the underground lab," Pryce said with a nod. "You can take her horn back. Things have been awful busy since then…"

"Yeah… I'm all over the place emotionally right now," Saylee sighed, swallowing a lump in her throat. Highs and lows, from kissing Blue to Diana's death… Blue had told her about Selene, too. Saylee had barely known the dying Staryu that she'd captured near Olivine and sent to Vera to look after in the clean lake by New Bark. Selene had been grateful enough to Saylee to come fight against Team Rocket for her and had died with her core jewel crushed under the heel of a Rocket's boot. Blue hadn't told her for a few days, saying that he didn't want to pile a second death on top of losing Diana and dealing with the emotional turmoil of finding out about her father. For once, Saylee couldn't really blame him. Finding out Selene's death had been a dull blow; there was guilt that Selene had died fighting for her, but none of the personal grief that had accompanied so many other deaths. Even that guilt was lost in everything else that was happening…

"How long until you're out of hospital?" Pryce asked.

"Just… about a week, I think," Saylee said. "I'm going to spend a couple of days here in Goldenrod with Silver, Blue and my Pokémon before we all go our separate ways for the winter..." she looked at her grandparents. "Silver and I… could we spend the winter in Mahogany? With you?"

"Of course, dear!" Helen said effusively. "We can get to know you two, you can meet your cousins and your aunts and uncles… It'll be good for both of you to have a bit of time in a stable home, too, I'm sure. Oooh, we can all go to the Langnicht ceremonies in Ecruteak together! Have you ever been? Well, of course, you've never been in Johto during Langnicht before, but…"

"I'm sure the Langnicht celebrations are different from ours in Kanto," Saylee said. "I can't wait to see it. I'll be travelling around the country on and off through winter, just in case, but…"

"You've got a home base in Mahogany now, don't you worry," Pryce said firmly. "You're our family. I'll be doing some travelling on and off, myself. Need to talk to some of the captains of ships coming in and out of Olivine. We used to travel all over back in the day, Helen and I. We know more than a few of them."

"I'm from Sinnoh myself," Helen explained. "Our three were all born while travelling. Ah, those were the days…"

"Yes, some've the Captains will know me," Pryce mused. "Gio's best chance of getting out of the country'll have been by ship. I'll have to see about any suspicious passengers they've carried…" he smiled grimly. "He's still our son, and I think that does make it my job to be part of bringing the fool to justice. I can't deny the desire to give the boy a good kicking myself."

Saylee giggled. She couldn't help it. Helen Pryce was warm and Arthur Pryce cold, but they both talked about Giovanni—cruel, megalomaniacal Giovanni—like a naughty child, and the way they talked and moved around each other was close in a way that Saylee wasn't accustomed to. Too many people in Kanto were teenagers, widows and widowers… she'd never been around a couple that were _close_ like this. Morty and Eusine almost counted, but they hadn't been together as long as these two, and as Eusine had told her, there were still a lot of issues with Morty's heritage between them.

It was kind of like what she'd imagined having two parents was like, as a kid. She didn't remember Blue's parents much, but she remembered that they hadn't been _happy_ like these two. Well, where they lived, who was?

A pokégear rang. Saylee looked at hers, noticing with some confusion that it was still and silent on her bedside table. "It's alright, dear, that's mine," Helen said, fishing her own pokégear out of her bag. "Hello? Oh, Wyatt, dear! No, we're visiting the hospital… we'll tell you all about it. Oh, is that the time already?" She held her pokégear away to check the time. "Goodness me! I'm so sorry, dear, we lost track of time, we'll be on our way in just a mo! Love you, dear, see you soon!" She blew a kiss into the phone and hung up. "Saylee, dear, I'm so sorry, we promised to meet your cousin while we were here in Goldenrod and you slept longer than we thought you would."

"I sleep all the time," Saylee said ruefully. "I've already read all the books Morty sent me twice, and I'm _bored_ in here."

"Well, shall we tell Wyatt to come visit you?" Pryce said, standing up and holding Helen's coat for her to shrug into. "He's about your age. He lives here with his parents in Goldenrod and plays music for the radio. He's very good, especially on the piano."

"That's my cousin?" Saylee said in surprise, looking at her pokégear. "Wow… I've listened to his music before. He _is_ good. I'd love to meet him."

"Wonderful!" Helen said, looking pleased. "We'll tell him all about you, I'm sure he'll love to come visit. Now, we'd best dash." She leaned over and planted a kiss on Saylee's cheek. "Do look after yourself, dear. We'll set up a couple of rooms for you and your brother back home. Oh, is your young man coming too?"

"He's not my—" Saylee cut herself off when she remembered that, yes, Blue actually kind of _was_ now. "No, he's going back to Kanto soon. After I'm out of the hospital."

"When are you going back?" Pryce said, picking up a cane. He wasn't leaning any weight on it at all; Saylee wasn't sure why he needed it, unless a sword or something was hidden inside. "Your mother still lives in Kanto, doesn't she?"

"I'll go back when I have Red to bring back with me," Saylee said firmly. "I'm not going back home without my brother."

"Your brother's lucky that you're looking for him, dear," Helen said with a smile. "We'll see you soon, then. Do look after yourself!"

"Take care," Pryce said, nodding to Saylee as he and his wife left.

Saylee reached over and picked up her pokégear, turning on the radio and tuning it to the music channel. Elegant violin music was playing. Goldenrod Radio prided themselves on live music, so it wouldn't be her cousin, but it was pleasant to listen to anyway. She wondered if she'd heard him play before. _I must have. I'm kind of jealous, to be honest. I never learned to play much beyond simple flute tunes… I wonder what he's like?_

{}

"Yous'll be right in there fae the championship," Mary said, giving Toby a congratulatory nuzzle as the other Pokemon piled into the prep room to greet Carrie, Hernan and Tobias, who were resting up after the competition. "It's gaunnae be the day Lee's oot ae the hospital, aye?"

"Aye… yeah," Chip said, nodding and edging around the bench that Hernan was sitting on. "She'll be seein' you three competin' for the first time, right?"

Carrie nodded. "This is pretty fun," she said, examining the shiny medal that she, Hernan and Tobias had just won. "It's a good way to hone crucial battle skills in a non-lethal context. I like it."

"Can you even 'ave fun without it bein' about figh'in'?" Georgia wanted to know. Hernan and Carrie looked blankly at each other.

"Dad's a fighting-type and Mum's a hereditary grave guardian, so no," Toby laughed. "But that's fine! Oooh, I can't wait for the championship now! I can't wait for Lee to see!"

"Hey, guys," Chaz said, poking his head through the door of the prep room. "Just so you know, there was a paper-pusher making trouble about you guys entering without a trainer again."

"What happened?" Hernan said, walking out of the door and peering around. The main hall of the Pokéathlon Dome was vast enough for even Chaz to have plenty of space to move around, and he wasn't even the biggest Pokémon around. A gigantic, metallic Onix was looming over the check-in desk at the far end of the dome.

"I told 'em I'm your trainer," Nider declared. "Got me a hat and everything." He poked at the bobble hat, the bright orange still clashing hideously with his purple skin. Since how ugly it was didn't outweigh how funny it still was, they let him keep it.

"I told him to take it up with Saylee if he had a problem," Chaz grunted. "I think they need to change the guidelines. Young Pokémon that are new to training, sure, they'll need directions, but the more seasoned battlers and competitors…"

"Hernan? It is you, isn't it?"

"Hmm?" Hernan turned around, looking around for the person who'd called out to him. There was a shout of joy as something leapt on him from above, foot striking at his head. He dodged immediately, parrying and punching out. His attacker was a blur of long brown limbs, attacking and parrying as precisely as Hernan.

"What do you think you're _doing_?" Carrie demanded, flinging her bone club at the attacker, who leapt aside. She was surprised to see that Hernan was laughing. "What's going on, Hernan? Who is that?"

"Horado!" He called. "Is it really you? I thought you were dead!"

"Likewise, you idiot!" The brown figure stilled to a point where they could see him. He had a smooth brown body with long, coiled legs. He had no face, simply a pair of eyes that were crinkled in a smiling way. Nobody could figure out how he was talking, or indeed laughing. "I thought you'd been killed when the dojo collapsed! You vanished!"

"That's my line!" Hernan grabbed Horado and rubbed his knuckles off the top of the other's head. "The master returned me, that's the last thing I remember. The next thing I know, I've been dug out of the rubble by these fantastic people! Oh, the stories I've got to tell you…" He turned back to the group, grinning broadly. "Everyone— this is my brother, Horado. He's a Hitmonlee."

"Your missing brother!" Carrie said, expression brightening in comprehension. "That's wonderful! It's very nice to meet you, Horado. Blessings be on your soul."

"Blessings be on your soul," Tobias echoed. "Hi, Uncle Horado!"

"Uncle?" Horado said, turning a curious look on Hernan.

"This is my mate, Carrie, and our son Tobias," Hernan said. "And this is Chaz, a Charizard, and quite the ally to fight alongside. These are my son's friends—Mary, Chip, Nider, Georgia…"

"Horado! There you are!"

"Master!" Horado said, turning to address a highly muscled human man in tattered white clothes. "Hernan's alive!"

"Hernan!" The human said, grinning happily when he saw Hernan. He threw a punch that Hernan blocked easily, throwing a punch back that the human actually _deflected_. "It is you! Damn, give my regards to whoever builds pokéballs! I hoped it would keep you safe, and I guess I was right!"

"Very much so," Hernan said, patting the scar on his face. "I got away with only this. How did you all escape?"

"By the skin of our teeth," the master said, scratching his head. "We went into training in Mt Mortar… and then that radio signal went out!"

"Were you fighting in Goldenrod?" Horado asked. "We got into some mighty streetfights!"

"You were there?" Hernan said. "So were we!"

"We were underground or in the Radio Tower most of the time," Carrie said. "We probably missed you entirely."

"Hmm, no doubt," Horado sighed. "Then we came here to compete, and what do I see on the display screens but a Hitmonchan called Hernan who looks remarkably like my lost brother Hernan? I had to investigate!" He kicked up, bumping his foot against Hernan's fist. "I was going to ask you to come train with us, but…"

"Yes, it looks like you have a brand new training group," the master said, bowing his head to Carrie and the others.

"I have a new family," Hernan said, taking Carrie's hand in his. "But I'm so glad that you're both alive. I really am. We'll have to have a match sometime! I'd love for you to meet my new trainer, Saylee, but she's in hospital right now."

"Saylee from Kanto? The one who lead the assault on Team Rocket here and in Saffron from what I heard?" The master said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Yes, I think I'd like to meet her very much. We'll have to do battle soon!"

"Please tell me he means with Pokémon," Chaz muttered to Hernan. Hernan just shrugged.

{}

{}

_Three days until New Leaf and I haven't finished Fire Emblem yet… I should probably spend less time using Reeking Boxes to max out everyone's relationships and just go kill Grima already._


	32. Chapter 31

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Fresh air!" Saylee exclaimed, stretching her arms up into the air.

"_Cold_ air," Blue pointed out, zipping his jacket up. "Maybe you should've just stayed in that warm hospital room all winter."

"Boring, and I'd never get to wear these," Saylee said, pulling her gloves on and starting to wrap her scarf around her neck. She blushed when Blue held her hair out of the way for her. "Thanks. That reminds me—I really need a haircut."

"You've never had it long before," Blue commented. "It looks really different."

"It gets in the way," Saylee grumbled. "Have you ever considered trying to tame this?" she added, ruffling one of his wild spikes of hair.

"I'd like to see the pair of scissors that could do it," Blue declared, catching her hand and dragging her off towards the underground. "Come on, then. We'd better be at the Pokéathlon Dome for three, though. You're going to go see Hernan, Carrie and Toby compete, right?"

"Of course I am!" Saylee said. "Honestly, I can't wait. It's been so long since I've seen any of my Pokémon being _active_…" She squeezed his hand. "It's so long since _I've_ been active! I got some good reading done and all, but it feels _so_ good to be out of that bed!"

"You're certainly looking more energetic than when you got into it," Blue said, grinning. "Though you're still a pale, skinny little—"

Saylee put a hand over his mouth, and shrieked when he licked it. "Ewww!"

Blue grinned even wider. "You don't mind that tongue so much when it's—"

Saylee grabbed him and kissed him, more or less proving his point. She could feel sparks tingling all the way to her toes, energizing her even more. Kissing Blue felt perfect.

Until a small hand shoved her in the belly.

"You are both _disgusting_," Silver informed her, pushing her and Blue apart. "C'mon, you guys are in _public_, do you have to be this _gross_?"

"A boy should not be so rude to his elder sibling," a voice said. Saylee heard it in her brain rather than her ears, telling her it was a psychic voice, but Blue frowned in confusion, suggesting that it wasn't Adam. When she looked up, she saw a Kadabra standing in front of them, not an Alakazam. Silver scowled at him. Mag was floating around the Kadabra's head, watching it warily.

"Will you stop _following_ me, you creep?" Silver demanded.

The Kadabra shook his head. "This one must attend upon you," he insisted.

"_We_'re with him," Mag buzzed.

The Kadabra shook his head. "A Magneton obeys a boy, even if obedience is not to a boy's benefit," he said. "A boy is volatile, a boy is angry, and a boy will not be safe if he runs off alone."

"I _get_ it, stop _following _me!" Silver demanded. "And stop talking like a retard!"

"Watch your mouth, moment-killer," Blue said, tugging Silver's hair. "If you're here too, maybe we should get you a haircut too. You look like a little girl with this hair."

"If I want my hair cut, I'll get Siren to do it," Silver said sullenly. He followed Saylee and Blue nevertheless, possibly not wanting to be left alone with the Kadabra. "Can one of you tell this guy to stop following me?!"

"He's not ours, we can't command him," Saylee said, looking to the Kadabra, who was also following. "What's your name? Do you have a trainer?"

"This one is Alec," the Kadabra said, bowing his head. "This one lives among the humans called Sonezaki. This one came to know the humans Sonezaki through their son the eldest, by the name of Bill."

"Bill? I think he said something about the first Pokémon he made friends with being an Abra," Blue commented. "Adam brought you up as well."

"Adam is a mighty Alakazam and wasted on protecting a boy," Alec said stiffly. "This one offered to take on the role in his place."

"Thanks for calling me a waste of time," Silver complained aloud. He was walking insistently between Saylee and Blue, possibly to ward off further grossness.

"Just watch your step. Most of the shops are back open but some of the lights on the steps are still broken," Blue said, giving Silver a gentle push and rolling his eyes at Saylee. "We promise not to be gross if you promise to behave for the hairstylist."

"Do I _need_ a stupid haircut?" Silver grumbled.

"C'mon, I'm going to get my hair cut really short," Saylee said, tugging at her ponytail, "and if I do that and you keep your hair long I'll look like your big brother and you my little sister."

"Even with short hair, you don't exactly look like a guy," Blue said, putting an arm around Saylee's shoulders. Silver shoved him in the side. "I wasn't doing anything gross!"

"You were _gonna_," Silver mumbled. "Maybe if it just gets a little shorter so it doesn't get all tangled, 'cause that's really annoying."

"_Success_," Saylee mouthed at Blue. Blue gave a longsuffering sigh.

{}

"These are _so_ comfy," Saylee said, turning around and looking at the new jeans in the mirror. "How much are they?"

"Oh, don't worry about that," the owner insisted. "You two spearheaded the rescue of our entire city! Anything from the shop you want, on me." He spread his arms, waving in the whole room. "How about a new jacket, too? That poor denim thing's so cut and burned up—what about this lovely cotton blend cardigan…" he started picking things out, telling her about them.

"Did he say free clothes?" Blue said, perking up. "I'm gonna go find some stuff for my sister, something other than the same three dresses she keeps patching up. For that matter, I should grab something for Gramps, and…" he hurried off, reciting a list of Pallet citizens who could do with new clothes, which was all of them.

"That's lovely," Saylee said, trying on the pale green cardigan. She automatically reached up to flick her hair out of the neck of it, experiencing a moment of surprise when her hand just brushed over short hair. She smiled and briefly spiked it up before smoothing it down again while looking at the cardigan in the mirror. "Do you have it in purple? My mum would love it. And… thank you so much, but you're probably going to regret offering us free clothes."

"I'd rather you were raiding the shop than Team Rocket, at least you don't smash the windows," the owner laughed. "And what about your little brother? You look like you haven't changed those clothes in a month, little guy."

"And what's wrong with that?" Silver said, crossing his arms. The nurses at the hospital had wanted to throw out his clothes while he was spending overnight there to have his arm checked up on, but he'd pitched a fit when they offered him new ones and had demanded his oversized trousers and tatty jumper back. One of the nurses had cleaned them and patched them up for him, but they still looked like he'd taken them out of a bin. "I like my clothes."

"Five months is still a little… scaffy," Mag put in. Silver glared at him.

"At least look at some things, maybe you'll change your mind," Saylee encouraged him, walking over to the children's section. She didn't look back to see if he was following; if she did, he'd stop out of pure contrariness. "What about this coat?"

"I don't care," Silver grumbled. "Black's stupid."

Pointedly not making any comment about the black jumper that he was clinging insistently to—_to be fair, it's so faded that it's more dark grey than black_—Saylee picked through a few more items of clothing, getting from Silver only noncommittal grunts and mumbles about how he liked his old clothes.

"Tell you what, I'll just get some things and you can decide if you like them," Saylee said, picking out a couple of t-shirts from popular cartoons, some trousers and a purple jacket with red lining similar to the lining on Silver's jumper.

"I don't want your stupid freebies!" Silver said, snatching the clothes from her. "I'll buy 'em _myself_!" He stormed off towards the tills.

"He's welcome to those free, too," the owner told Saylee.

"I don't think Silver likes being on the receiving end of free handouts," Saylee said, digging in her bag. _Doesn't seem to mind stealing things for himself, though…_

"Where'd he get the money, anyway?" Blue wanted to know, walking up with his arms full of clothing.

"I think he stole it out of my wallet while I was in the changing room," Saylee sighed, staring at the lack of money in her wallet. She turned and picked up her own pile of clothes. "Okay, I think I'll get these and a couple of t-shirts…"

"Oh, hey, you should check this out," Blue said, nodding towards the shirt racks. "Have you seen, uh, oh, what're they called, the guy with the puffy red hair and his Pidgeot?"

"That travelogue show?" Saylee said. "Yeah, I saw it in the hospital a few times. The last one I saw, they were somewhere in Hoenn, did you see it? The one with that _amazing_-looking street market…"

"I think this t-shirt's from the beach episode, that one seems pretty iconic," Blue said, nodding towards the t-shirt. It was pale green and showed the Pidgeot from the show, a caustic character called Perry who relentlessly took the piss out of every locale that he and his trainer David went to while David gushed happily about it. The picture on the t-shirt, from an episode that Saylee hadn't seen, showed Perry standing on a beach. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses perched on his beak, wings spread and head tipped up towards the sun. "Must be the sunglasses."

"Must be," Saylee agreed. "I don't think I've seen this episode." She smiled faintly, taking down one of the t-shirts and holding it up for size.

"You can just tell that snarky bastard knows how badass he looks in sunglasses," Blue commented.

"Pedro would've looked way more badass," Saylee said. "He never would've taken them off if he'd ever had sunglasses." She draped the t-shirt over the cardigan slung over her arm. "Tell you what, I'll get changed into some of this so I have new clothes for the dome this afternoon."

"Are you done _yet_?" Silver whined. Saylee blinked at him. He was wearing one of the pairs of jeans that she'd picked out for him, along with the purple jacket. Mag was floating behind him, a couple of bags with the store's logo hanging from his U-magnets. "Seriously, you guys are taking _forever_."

"Looking sharp, kid," Blue said, ruffling Silver's hair. Silver ducked him with a frustrated expression. "I'm gonna bag these up. Think you can find anything for SG, Sila and her brothers? Mr. and Mrs. MacNeil, too. I'm not a Machamp, I can't carry everyone's stuff." He walked off to the till.

"Yeah, but you _have_ a Machamp," Saylee pointed out. "You're right, Silver, I'm going to be late for the dome at this rate. I promise I'll be quick."

"Then stop talking and _go_!" Silver complained, fidgeting with the sleeves of his new clothes.

"We think your new clothes look good," Mag put in. "You look more grownup now."

"I'm not a _kid_," Silver muttered. "I don't need them."

"But it's nice of you to wait for them anyway," Mag said brightly.

"Shut up, Mag."

{}

"Lee! Leeleeleeleeleeleelee!"

"I'm glad to see you too, Toby," Saylee laughed as Tobias hugged her. He pulled back and flew around her head.

"Where'd all your hair go?" he asked, fluffing at the short strands at the back of her head. Saylee rubbed her hands through it, making it spike up a little and then flattening it again.

"It's easier to manage like this," she said. She'd never had her hair this short; she'd never had a professional cut before, only a rough cut with a utility knife, but the stylist had given her a full wash, cut and style for free, talking all the while about how her Nidoking had saved his shop from Rockets trying to crack open the till. She was wearing her new clothes, too, blue jeans and a soft, dark blue cardigan over the t-shirt with the Pidgeot on it. Chaz gave her a fond smile as he neckhugged her.

"Tobes, you got tae be gettin' oan," Mary said, running up and hugging Saylee. All her hair spiked up. "Lookit you, hen! Go oan, Tobes, get oan. Else Nider'll hae yer guts fae snazzy garters tae match 'is hat." Toby flew off. "Howzit gaun, Mag? Git over yer baw sickness?"

"I feel fine, thank you," Mag said, nodding. Silver yelped. Whenever Mag spoke, because of all of the cloth shopping bags hanging from his magnets, static electricity sparked off of him, and while Silver's hair was still long enough to brush at his shoulders it was now short enough to spike up noticeably. His fringe had been cut to keep it out of his face, at least. "I'm sorry!"

"It's fine, just talk farther away from me!" Silver yelped, pawing down his hair. "What's this freak?"

Georgia and Chip were walking up with a brown, bandy-legged Pokémon with no head, only two large eyes set into its armoured chest. Saylee gave her own Pokémon big hugs—Georgia nearly inadvertently crushed her, while Chip was more careful with his recently-hospitalized trainer—before clicking open her Pokédex to confirm that the third Pokémon was what she thought he was.

"You're a _Hitmonlee_?" she said in amazement. "It's an honour to meet you!"

"It's an honour to meet the trainer who's brought so much fire and joy to my brother Hernan," the Hitmonlee said, reaching out to shake her hand. "My name is Horado."

"You're… Hernan's brother?" Saylee said in delight.

"He's got a brother?" Blue said curiously.

"We thought he didn't anymore, we thought he'd been killed by T…" Saylee trailed off, glancing at Silver. While he'd been willing to visit her in hospital, he'd always storm out the moment she brought up Team Rocket. Luckily, he didn't seem to be paying attention to her, instead making a beeline for a drinks machine, digging some change out of the pockets of his new purple jacket.

"He'd better be quick, we need to be in the dome in five minutes," Chaz said, quickly changing the subject. "Blue's team are holding seats for us."

"Oh, I had best go as well, I'm on a team too," Horado said. "It's been wonderful to meet you!" He crouched, and then sprang into the air, powerful legs launching him to the opposite side of the hall and out of sight.

"Is there room for everyone to see?" Saylee asked Blue.

"There are pretty vast seated and standing areas, and events are displayed on the TVs that are all over the place," Blue said, taking her hand and leading her towards a large entry door. "There's enough space even for behemoths like Chaz and Sam to watch in the standing area."

"Aye, when yer big yin here says they're savin' us seats," Mary added, "he means they're musclin' oot a staunin' space fae us right by the ringside. SILVER! 'MON, WEE YIN! Mag, get his arse movin'!"

"I'll come when I want to! Don't you order me around!" Silver shouted back, staring intently at the drinks selection and, most likely, deliberately extending the time he took to choose.

"I'll be leadin' him t'the arena when he's bein' done," Chip promised, turning and ambling back over to wait patiently next to the vending machine, asking Silver questions about Tyra.

"'Mon, I dinnae want tae miss the start," Mary said, hurrying off.

Saylee was astonished by the tremendous size and scale of the Pokéathlon arena. Currently, it was set up as flat metal platform, roughly fifteen metres square and surrounded by a sloped ring of standing space and raised banks of seats. Four more platforms were set up inside the arena, one on each side of the main platform, with the trainers standing on top of them, surrounded by safety barriers, unlike the main platform. Saylee could easilypick out Nider, standing on the platform at the far side of the stadium from her. It was kind of funny to see the hulking Nidoking with his tail wrapped around himself to fit into a space designed for a single human.

"Blue!" Pete called. He was circling around a certain spot and started swooping down over it.

"'Scuse me, trying to get to my friends here, move it," Blue said, pushing through the crowd, growing increasingly irritated with the press of sports fans. Mary had already rushed on ahead, eager to see Tobias' match.

"Let me, moy love," Georgia said, pushing forwards. The crowds moved much more readily in front of four stony hands. Soon, they joined the bulky huddle of Sam, Gary, Edgar, Adam, Mario and Mary, while Pete and Chaz elected to fly a little way overhead. Quite a number of large flying Pokémon were flapping around the arena, many with viewing trainers on their backs. A couple of Pidgeotto were carrying video cameras, filming the action below.

"Hey, Pete, how about a lift for a better view?" Blue called up to his Pidgeot. "If you get onto Chaz's back, you'll be able to see way better," he explained to Saylee. "You won't block anyone's view except the people at the very top back seats and, seriously, most of them just watch on screens anyway because they're so damn far away from the arena that I honestly don't know why they even come into the arena."

"Fair enough," Saylee said, reaching up for Chaz to pick her up. "Can everyone else see alright?"

"Oh, aye," Mary said. "Well, in a mo. Gie's a boost, Georgia?"

"'Ere y'go, moy love," Georgia said, picking Mary up and putting her on top of her stony back.

"Ta," Mary said, leaning down and hugging Georgia before straightening up to peer intently at the arena. "There's Tobes!"

"Where?" Saylee asked, just as Chaz picked her up. She clambered over his shoulder and onto his back. He wasn't wearing a flight harness, but she figured she'd be fine. He wasn't going to be moving that far or doing any dodging, after all.

She looked back to the arena and spotted Tobias, Carrie and Hernan standing on the edge of the platform closest to Nider. They were wearing red bandanas on their foreheads. Horado was in the team directly opposite them, along with a Machoke and, to Saylee's surprise, the human black belt who trained them, all wearing blue bandanas. _This guy takes training with his Pokémon to the extreme,_ Saylee thought, remembering what she'd seen of the Pokéathlon on TV. The events were designed with the greater strength, speed and stamina of Pokémon in mind, and many of them were actually dangerous to humans to compete in. _I wonder how he convinced them to let him compete. This is way more dangerous than letting Nider wear a hat and command a team._

To the left of Nider, Saylee recognized Jasmine, the shy but dangerous trainer from Olivine, along with her Steelix Olly, wearing yellow. Flanking Olly were Mic and Mac, Jasmine's Magnemite; one of them had actually evolved into a Magneton, though Saylee had no idea which.

Saylee knew nobody in the fourth team. It was commanded by a young man with spiky green hair and a team consisting of a Quagsire, a Wobbuffet and an Ursaring. This team was dressed in green.

"Lee! LEE!"

Saylee twisted around to look down at the crowd. She could see Chip and Tyra trying to push their way through, with Silver in their wake. Mag, Gareth and Zeb were all floating over his head. "Chaz, can you fly back a little so I can give Silver a lift up?" Saylee asked. "So he can see too, y'know."

"Sure," Chaz said. "But the first time he calls anyone a cripple, I'm dropping him."

"I'll be sure to let him know," Saylee said, leaning over Chaz's neck and extending a hand downwards. "Silver! Do you want to ride on Chaz's back with me? You'll be able to see better!"

"Who says I want to see?" Silver called back. Saylee rolled her eyes.

"You're here, aren't you?" she said. "Come on up… unless you're too scared to ride on a Charizard's back?"

"Yeah, right! What kind of weakling do you take me for?" Silver yelled, reaching up to take Chaz's outreached claw. Chaz lifted him up so he could reach Saylee's hand, which he let go of as soon as possible. He settled himself on Chaz's neck, a little way in front of Saylee. "Hey, Siren! You wanna see?"

"What makes you think I want to sit up there on that blast furnace?" Siren said, running up Tyra's back. "Hey, Ty, can I sit on your head? I can? Awesome. You're a pal."

"You're a pest," Tyra responded, shouldering forwards and grabbing a spot next to Sam. Chip squeezed in between Georgia and Gary. "Has it started yet?"

"In a moment," Blue called. "We made it with time to spare. Give the guys a wave!"

"Toby!" Saylee shouted. Tobias spotted her and started waving furiously. Carrie and Hernan also gave her a wave. "Good luck! I know you'll win! You always do!"

"Of course they'll win, they're the best damn 'mons in here!" Nider shouted back. "Even Toby could take out half the stadium with his eyes shut, couldn't ya, little guy?" He then flicked one of his claws off of his horn in the direction of the green-haired trainer diagonally across from him. "He'd knock _you_ idiots out in his sleep!"

"Keep talkin' trash, if it's all you're good for," the trainer shouted back.

"Don't just _talk_ trash, fight already!" Silver shouted. Saylee stared at him. "What? It's no use talking trash if you're not actually going to kick someone's ass. It just makes you weak, trying to look like you're strong when you're not. Why aren't they fighting yet?"

"This isn't an outright fight," Saylee said. "It's—"

"_LLLLADIES, GENTLEMEEEEN AAAAND OOOOTHEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRR! WELCOME TO THE POKEATHLON DOME'S STAMINA CUP!"_

The crowd broke into wild cheering. Saylee spotted the commentator sitting on a Fearow's back, hovering directly over the platform. She couldn't see him clearly, aside from that he was wearing white. He started shouting out team names and members, with fans cheering up a storm for each one. Saylee joined in the euphoric shouting when "Team Nider" was called.

"Ceez, pop my eardrums, why don't you," Silver grumbled, slamming his hands over his ears. "Why're you shrieking like a Zubat?"

"I'm cheering, Silver," Saylee said, having to shout over the uproar around her. "To support my Pokémon. Got to be loud in this cacophony."

"C'mon, like they don't already know you support them," Silver complained. "I bet they know fine without you screaming like a moron."

Saylee smiled and patted his shoulder. She quickly dropped her hand when he stiffened a little. Still, she hoped she'd managed to communicate that she appreciated what he had just said. She turned her attention back to the announcer.

"_ARE-YOU-READAAAY?!" _he shouted into his microphone. "_THEN IT'S TIIIME TO POOOOOKEATHLOOON!"_

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_Sorry I was so late to update this week… things have been really busy with work, Animal Crossing, my mum's birthday, father's day and Animal Crossing. Also I got Animal Crossing. It can be time consuming._


	33. Chapter 32

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

Carrie spun her club around in her hands and then held it up to block as Olly's tail was swung towards her. Steel met bone with a resounding _crash_ that sounded as if it should have knocked Carrie out of the stadium, but she held her ground. Olly's tail shook as he tried to push her out of the arena and score his team some points.

"Come on Olly, you can push her off, I know you can!" Jasmine roared. She had transformed again, into a loud, passionate, vicious coach who was putting Olly's bulk to full effect in the sumo contest.

"Try an' lift the bugger up an' get under 'im!" Nider yelled. Carrie shifted her stance, trying to move her club around to lever up Olly's tail. Across the arena, the black belt was trying to wrestle a Wobbuffet over the edge, but the Wobbuffet was firmly rooted to the ground and was trying to throw him off instead. The black belt dropped to the ground and kicked hard at Wobbuffet's tail. The sturdy blue Pokémon howled, hopping up into the air, allowing the human to fling it hard over his shoulder at Olly's head. Olly was momentarily thrown off-balance, and Carrie took the opportunity to whack him over the edge with her club. Olly and Wobbuffet both went down, and the red team's score shot up.

"What a crock! Master, you ought to get some points for that Wobbuffet!" the other trainer of the martial arts team yelled. "Watch out, he's replacing it with Quagsire!"

"Mac, go for the human!" Jasmine bellowed. Her Magneton made for the black belt. Ranged attacks were not permitted in the sumo match, so Mac had no choice but to shove—and he wasn't a fraction of Olly's strength. A rescue Pidgeot began circling below them in case the human fell. The drop wasn't far, nothing to a Pokémon, but humans were more fragile. Saylee had to wonder how he was approved to be in the arena with Pokémon.

"Swap out!" Nider ordered. Carrie ran back to the red corner and flopped to the ground, looking a little worn out. Hernan ran out to take her place. "Get that Quagsire!"

"Carrie could've taken out that Magneton easy," Silver said. "It's weak compared to her. Why didn't she?"

"Because that Magneton's weak, but Olly is really, really strong," Saylee said, watching the competitors wrestle back and forth. "Time's running out. If they fill up the floor with the weakest contenders, then Hernan can get a good chunk of points right before time runs out."

The black belt managed to fling Mac out of bounds, and then ran back to his corner for his Machoke to switch out. Mic had to take Mac's place, as the rules dictated that each team had to switch through all three members. Mic was immediately intercepted by the Quagsire.

"Five seconds, here we go!" Saylee said. The crowd started to chant along with the countdown. "FIVE! FOUR! THREE!"

Hernan went for the Quagsire from behind, pushing it and Mic both over the edge.

"TWO! ONE!"

The Machoke, however, evidently had the same plan. It tackled Hernan from behind and pushed him over the edge too.

"ZERO! THAT'S THE MATCH, FOLKS!" the announcer bellowed. The sunken floor rose up to the podium, carrying Mic, the Quagsire and Hernan back up to the same level of the others. Hernan looked sheepish, but Carrie and Tobias gave him a hug and it looked like Nider was encouraging him. Hernan's fall had cost them some points, but one look at the scoreboard indicated that they were still ahead by a little. Saylee joined in the cheering proudly.

"Ceez, so they pushed some people over, big deal," Silver complained. "How is this fun?"

"Nobody gets hurt," Saylee said happily. "Not really hurt. And nobody dies. It's just… for fun."

"Saylee, you'll wanna watch this," Blue called. "They're changing the arena! You've never seen it, right?"

Saylee turned her attention back to the arena. All of the competitors and trainers had moved to the podium, while the floor around it had sunken away again. There was a lot of mechanical rumbling from the darkness below the stadium. Then a new floor rose up, a dirt track around the central podium. The red dirt had random boulders and patches of gravel strewn across it. There was a white starting line at one point around the track, and Tobias, Mic, the Machoke and the Ursaring lined up in front of it.

"The track changes every time, too," Chaz said. "It's always a different arrangement, so even experienced teams can't get a handle on how to run it. Well, that's the idea, I guess. The games are still a new thing, so there still aren't any really properly experienced or professional teams yet, though that guy with the green hair turns up a lot."

"His Pokémon got thrown around by a human, he's not that great," Silver grumbled.

"READY, SET, AND GO!" the announcer bellowed. A countdown began on the main screen and the Pokémon set off running—or rather, in the case of Tobias and Mic, flying. The gravel patches didn't bother them as much, but at one point Mic didn't see a boulder until it was too late and hit it pretty hard, and it took him longer to get back in the air than it took the runners to get back on their feet. Jasmine switched him out for Olly a few minutes later. Nider called back Tobias and replaced him with Carrie shortly after. Going at high speed around such a crowded obstacle course looked taxing, and most teams switched frequently. Nider had everyone crowded by the start line and switching out every lap, while Jasmine and the green-haired guy switched when a team member tired out. The dojo team switched extremely rarely, generally only when someone had hit a boulder hard.

"He keeps switching even though they're not tired," Silver commented. "They could keep going, y'know."

"But then they'd tire out," Saylee pointed out. "This way they're all running on high energy, all the time. I'm kind of impressed with Nider. I had no idea he was such a strategist."

"Just makes it all look really easy," Silver grumbled. "'S _boring_. Not proper arena fighting."

"Strictly speaking, it's sports, not fighting," Saylee said. "What do you mean, 'proper' arena fighting, anyway?"

The second half of her question was drowned out by a roar from the crowd as the announcer read out the rankings. Team Jasmine had narrowly pulled the most laps over Team Nider, with Team Chet in third and Team Koichi, the dojo team, lagging a little in fourth.

"ALLLLRIIIGHT, EVERYBODY!" the announcer bellowed. "AAAARE YOU READAAAY FOR THE THIRD! AND! FINAL! ROOOOUND? BLOOOOOOCK SMAAAAAASH!" The crowd cheered up a storm as the track fell away and more sheet-steel floor rose up to make the arena floor uniform. Four square sections fell away and rose up again with stacked concrete slabs on them.

"Smash ten, and the floor drops away and comes up with ten more," Chaz said. "Takes a few seconds. Whoever smashes the most wins."

"Simple enough," Saylee said, watching Hernan step up to the stack first. Olly, the Ursaring and, surprisingly, Kiyo, did likewise.

"Check it out, they're gonna smash shit!" Gareth shouted with far too much enthusiasm.

"Watch your language, we're in public!" Saylee shouted back.

"Nobody can hear him anyway!" Silver yelled, leaning forward and craning over Chaz's neck to see. The starting team members were raising their fists—or, in Olly's case, tail—over the tops of their stacks.

"READY! AND! BLOOOOCK _SMASH_!" the announcer bellowed. There was an echoing, resounding _crack_ as all four teams started smashing at the concrete.

Kiyo and Ursaring both went for rapid-fire punches that cracked a slab at a time. Hernan wasn't going for rapid-fire, but he was still fast, his punches smashing several slabs at a time. Olly simply raised his tail high and smashed through the entire stack in a single blow. He was immensely powerful, but _slow._ All teams seemed to progress at a fairly even pace to start with, but as the slight discrepancies in their paces began to show up, noticeable gaps appeared.

Kiyo was the first to tire, replaced by his Machoke. The Ursaring followed shortly thereafter; rapid-fire evidently wasn't easy to keep up. The dopy-looking Quagsire didn't look like she'd be a rapid-fire puncher, but she was almost as fast as Ursaring. Olly just kept steadily smashing whole piles; he didn't look apt to tire any time soon, and Saylee suspected that he would be able to breeze through this contest with no fatigue whatsoever.

As in the relay, Hernan, Carrie and Tobias switched after every pile. Tobias was a powerful psychic, but his physical strength was nowhere near on a par with his parents and he plowed through his piles more slowly. Hernan and Carrie smashed through their piles quickly enough, though, and Team Nider was the only team not to lose time due to teammates flagging from fatigue.

"I think they're ahead!" Saylee said excitedly, glancing up at the scoreboard. Unlike in the other rounds, however, it didn't display a count. The slabs must have been vanishing too fast to be counted until the end.

"I dunno," Silver said, squinting. "They're too far away."

"Oh, come on," Gareth complained. "We're right _next_ to the damn—"

"FIVE! FOUR! THREE! TWO! ONE! AAAAND THAT'S IT!" the announcer yelled. All four pads dropped, taking away the last whole slabs. The teams all huddled together, various members hugging or back-slapping each other. The announcer and his Fearow flew down to the centre of the arena. "AAAARE YOU READAAAY FOR…. _THE RESULTS?!"_

The crowd cheered wildly. Various chants for favourite teams started up. "ALLLLRIGHTY THEN! FIRST… THE POINTS BONUS FOOOOOR…"

"This is always tenser than the actual rounds," Chaz said. "The bonus points can be a bit unpredictable, even if you've won all the rounds on points…"

"Yeah, Jasmine's winning right now," Saylee said, nervously watching the points on the screen scroll up. Team Nider was in third for bonus points, but then quickly moved up to second when the rounds started to be totalled up. They were more or less on even points when it came to the block smash. "Come on… come _on_…"

Team Koichi's points stopped scrolling first, then Team Chet's clicked to a halt. Then Team Jasmine's.

"AAAAAND THE WIIIINNERS AAAARE…" the announcer declared as the last points clicked into place, "THE AAAALL-POKÉMON WONDEEEER, TEEEEAAAAMMM NIDEEEEEERRR!"

"WOOHOO!" Saylee screamed, waving madly to them. "WELL DONE, GUYS!"

"Stop jumping around, you fucking retard!" Silver yelped angrily.

Saylee settled down, gripping his shoulder. "Sorry, did I nearly knock you off?" she said.

"You nearly fell off there," Chaz pointed out. "Can you sit back a little? My neck's at a really awkward angle to keep you on."

"Sorry," Saylee said, leaning back and dragging Silver with her. "You okay?"

"I'm _fine_, just stop being demented!" he complained.

"I will when you stop calling people retards," Saylee said. "That's not nice and you know it."

"So who says I need to be nice?" Silver grumbled.

"It'll make people more inclined to be nice to you," Saylee said. "C'mon, Chaz, they're leaving the arena, let's go meet up with them and congratulate them!"

"Let's drop down and wait with the others, first," Chaz said, swooping down towards the larger group of Pokémon. "There'll be a huge crush at the exit." Saylee looked back and saw that he was right; the exits from the arena were utterly mobbed, whereas there was already enough free space for Chaz to land by the railing at the front. As soon as he touched down, Silver yelled impatiently for Tyra to get him down.

"Hey, Silver?" Saylee asked, climbing down from Chaz's back as Tyra set Silver down. "You said you'd seen arena fights before?"

"Yeah, well… dad had a couple of arenas. In the back, y'know," Silver said, looking down at the mention of Giovanni. "There were fights in there all the time. Most of the time, they'd throw two Pokémon in and not let them out until one was dead. The winner got to live. They trained some really crazy strong Pokémon that way."

"Emphasis on crazy, I'm thinking," Tyra said. "That's horrible. Did you watch them?"

"Mum made me, sometimes," Silver said, fidgeting with pushing his new fringe back and forth rather than looking at them. "She wanted me to learn about being strong. The weak die and the strong live, that's the way it should be."

"So you think I should've died the first time I lost to Chip?" Tyra demanded.

"Of course not, idiot!" Silver shouted angrily. "_You're_ not weak. Don't be stupid."

"So you don't think Pokémon should die just for losing?" Saylee asked sternly.

Silver shifted uncomfortably. "Why _didn't_ you kill them?" he asked. "I mean… they _lost_."

Saylee stared. "Why should I kill them?" she asked.

"It's what normal people do," Silver insisted.

"Shit, does he really think that?" Blue said, staring at Silver. "Oh, yeah, you grew up around Team Jerkoff. Listen, kid, they are not normal. Pretty much nobody kills for fun, or for sport. Hell, look at how many people show up to this thing." He waved at the people filing out of the exit doors. "They like this stuff because nobody ever gets seriously hurt. Even in Kanto, where everyone's killed at some time in their life for food… there's a difference between killing because you're starving and killing because you think it's fun. Only psychopaths find fun in killing. Get enough psychos in one place and you get Team Rocket, but they're not normal and they're not right."

"Are you serious?" Silver said, staring at Blue. "I mean… I thought you were a wimpy freak because you let Tyra go."

"I am eternally grateful that I am not the only person in the world that does that," Saylee said, putting a hand on Silver's shoulder. "Silver… if anyone ever kills your Pokémon, it's not okay. It's not normal, and it's not right."

"His _mother_ tried to kill me," Tyra said, spitting the word _mother_ in a way that suggested she'd much rather be using a different word entirely. "She said it was to teach Silver a lesson."

"She'd've done it, too," Silver muttered. "Like she killed Pike."

"Pike?" Saylee asked. Silver shifted uncomfortably, refusing to look anywhere near her.

"…He was my Pidgey," Silver said. "I caught him myself. Not even with a pokéball or anything, with my hands, and I fed him and trained him and got him to ride around on my shoulder and we beat _tons_ of wild Pokémon. Only I got stupid and thought he was properly strong even though he hadn't evolved yet. I showed off about how tough he was, and Mum said if he was so strong I needed to prove it and put him in a pit with a Rhyhorn." He ground his heel into the ground. "Like that."

"_Whit_," Mary said flatly, her tail sparking. The others all muttered various curses and declarations of hate.

"Son of a Spearow…" Pete snarled, fluffing up his crest massively. Blue reached up and put his hand gently on his Pidgeot's beak, though he was grimacing and Saylee could hear him grinding his teeth.

"Silver, I know I say this a lot, but I'm going to keep saying it because it bears repeating and I know it can be hard to acknowledge," Saylee said, squeezing Silver's shoulder, "but your mother was wrong. I know she's your mum, but she was wrong. You're her son. Any time she hurt you like that, _she was wrong_."

"Yeah, that ain't right," Gareth agreed, scowling. "Where's she locked up? I can get in her head while she's sleeping and make her never want to sleep again—"

"Don't!" Silver said sharply. "Just… don't. Okay?" He pulled away from Saylee and walked off. "C'mon. The doors are clear. Let's _go_ already." Gareth floated after him, looking unusually serious. Zeb and Mag exchanged unsettled looks.

"I wish I'd ripped that woman's throat out when I had the chance," Tyra snarled.

"That wouldn't been right either, t'be murderin' her like that," Chip remonstrated her. "'Specially in front o' Silver."

"What if I did it now, while he's not watching?" Tyra suggested. "It wouldn't be murder if I ate her whole, right? You said there's a difference between murder and killing for food."

"Yeah, but you don't want to kill her because you're hungry, do you?" Saylee said. "You want to kill her because you hate her. I feel the same way."

"It's not right," Tyra muttered, heading off after Silver. Saylee sighed. Blue squeezed her hand.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"What for?" Saylee asked, staring at him.

"You know what," Blue said, looking down. "You know who."

"Paul… Eliza…" Saylee gripped Blue's hand. "You didn't want to kill them, and you sure as hell didn't do it because you _enjoyed_ it. You feel guilty… that makes a difference, that you feel that way. People like _them_ don't."

"I found those pits he was talking about," Blue said softly as they walked through the exit doors. "There were… remains. We piled them all into one pit and burned them while Carrie and some of the other Marowak prayed for them. They were all crying by the end. Said they'd taken in a lot of pain and sorrow to give those souls release…" he ground his teeth again. "There was a lot of other junk we burned in another pit. Whips and shit. You don't want to hear about it."

"And I don't think you want to talk about it," Saylee agreed. Blue nodded.

"Just… Ceez, I just thought that kid was a little jerk," he muttered. "But the more he talks, the more I wonder which of his parents was more of a twisted fuck. My first thought would've been Giovanni, but it doesn't sound like he was involved much."

"No, I wouldn't really expect him to be," Saylee said scornfully. "It doesn't seem to be his area… not that Arianna seems to be much good at it."

"I think that kid's lucky to have a sister like you," Blue said, letting go of Saylee's hand and putting his arm around her waist, hugging her. "You're willing to put up with the little jerk."

"Yeah, well, I'm used to dealing with jerks," Saylee said, elbowing him and grinning.

"In here!" Mary said, darting past them and pushing open a prep room door. "Tobes! Braw show!" Tobias flew over to hug her, and she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Saylee! You were here! Did you see?" he said excitedly, zipping over to hug Saylee.

Saylee hugged him back, grinning. "I saw," she said. "You guys were _brilliant_. Well done!"

"Yeah, it was kinda cool," Silver agreed. He made a sour face when Saylee smiled at him.

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_Apologies for the posting delay… I've had a hectic week, going to Switzerland to see _the fabulous Key-chan!_ Mainland Europe is so pretty *_* and the food is really, really good too… :D_


	34. Chapter 33

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"So, why didn't you tell me you were a strategy genius?" Saylee asked Nider.

Nider turned his attention away from Zeb, Pete and Tobias' attempt to corner Gareth somewhere in the air and stop him throwing random shadow balls at them. "A what now?" he asked. "Ain't nobody called me an anythin' genius before."

"Strategy, dumbass," Siren commented lazily. She was dozing on top of an ice floe that she'd formed on the National Park fountain. Silver was sitting on the edge of the fountain next to her, watching all of his Pokémon laze around with Saylee's and Blue's, chatting and napping, with an inscrutable expression on his face. Saylee was leaning against Blue's side as they sat on a bench nearby, sharing a box of chips with a pot of ketchup. It was pleasantly warm. "It means planning."

"Yeah, how you switched everyone regularly instead of letting them wear out," Chaz commented. He wasn't helping the other fliers chase Gareth through the air, although he did occasionally spit a small, white-hot fireball at Gareth any time he came too close. Sam would then casually extinguish the fireballs with a jet of water before they set fire to any of the greenery that filled the park. She seemed to be enjoying the random patterns of the fountain.

"I dunno, I went with it 'cause that's how Lee battles a lot," Nider said with a shrug. "When we're trainin', y'know? She always heals us up or switches us out anytime we get a bit hurt 'stead of waitin' 'til we really need it."

"Seems kinda wussy," Silver said. Edgar, who was trailing some of his leaves in the fountain, shifted a little and somehow managed to shower Silver with a spray of water. "HEY!"

"Don't be a jerk," Blue said without looking at either his Exeggutor or the kid, making it unclear which of them he was talking to. "Sounds like you're way more cautious these days," he said to Saylee.

"I wasn't nearly cautious enough when I started training," Saylee admitted, watching Georgia rock sleepily in the sunlight. "Made too many dumb mistakes, like letting Geoff try and fight an Oddish. He was a Geodude. Never a Graveller."

"Yeah, I remember," Chaz said. "He talked weird, too. Must be living underground that does it."

"What were that, moy love?" Georgia said sharply, apparently not nearly asleep after all. She cracked an eye open, then glared upwards as Pete and Tobias yelled furiously at Gareth for something. Carrie and Hernan had been sitting and leaning against each other's backs near her, but Carrie got up and flung her bone into the air, _thwacking_ Gareth as soon as he materialized.

"Alright, knock it off or I _will_ exorcise you, unspent energies or not," she said threateningly. "And Tobias… I don't ever want to hear you using such language again."

"Sorry, Mum," Tobias said sheepishly, flying down and settling next to Mary. Gareth sniggered, then yelped and turned pink. "You shut up," Tobias muttered, his eyes glowing pink as well.

"Just ignore 'im, Tobes, wanks like him arenae worth it," Mary said, flicking her tail. "Ooft, check it! Some'dy's got a call comin' in!"

"What?" Saylee said, just as Blue's pokégear rang.

"Hi?" he said, picking up. "Oh, yeah, I remember. Is that so? Okay, then, when? Right. Got it. See you then." He hung up. "How'd you know that, Mary?"

"Felt it comin' it," Mary said, twitching her tail. "Huh. Been able tae feel 'hings like that loads these days. I kinda like livin' 'roon all this 'leccy, but it's a bit much tae, got tae admit."

"What was the call about, anyway, Blue?" Saylee asked, picking out one of the larger chips and dipping it in the ketchup pot.

"Oh, well, y'know how they're rebuilding that old train line through the mountains?" Blue said. "Yeah, well, they were advertising for tough trainers to protect the supply groups leaving from Goldenrod. Offered pretty good money, too, so I signed up and they promised they'd call the next time they're planning to send out a supply group. Turns out that there's some major snows predicted for this winter, so the one leaving in three days is the last one going for the winter, so, uh…"

"You can't miss that," Saylee said, leaning up at him and passing him a chip. "It's fine. I understand. You need to go back and protect everyone for the winter, and I'll stay here and start looking for Red as soon as it starts snowing. What're they paying you in?"

"Cash, normally, but I was able to get them to pay in food that stores well and some of that really _nice_ Chansey-egg medicine," Blue said in between bites of chip.

"Finally, your innate talent for being annoying has been turned into a force for good," Saylee joked. "Carrie, Hernan, what are your plans? Last year, you were really worried about missing the Langnicht rituals at Lavender…"

"Yes, you're the head of the clan now," Hernan said thoughtfully. "You definitely can't miss it this year. I can't wait to see the rituals, truth be told, if I'm allowed to."

"I'm the head of the clan, and I say yes," Carrie said, kissing Hernan on the cheek. "We'll have to go back with Blue. Chaz, are you going back for the Charmander project?"

"Actually, Blue, can you tell them that I'm up for the project, but not until spring?" Chaz asked. "Learning to raise a bunch of 'manders is probably going to be challenging enough without having to deal with it being cold, dark and almost constantly rainy. They can't go forward without my DNA, and I'm not giving my consent for them to try and dig up some 'zard bones from Mt Moon without my being there too."

"Fair enough," Blue said, throwing Chaz a thumbs-up. "I'll tell them. Are you staying here?"

"I want to help look for Red and Ben," Chaz said firmly.

"I hope Ben's alright," Sam said sadly. "If it gets cold enough to _snow_ here… he's a grass-type. They don't do well in the cold."

"Oh, I can't _wait_ to see snow again," Siren said with relish. "I haven't seen it since I was a kitten. It doesn't really tend to reach Cianwood."

Silver reached out and scratched her ears, making her purr. "So why didn't your dumbass trainer ever, I dunno, go on holiday somewhere it snows?" he asked.

"'Cause he's a dumbass," Siren said flippantly. "_Duh."_

"Are you guys going to stay with your new relatives or something?" Blue asked Saylee, reaching for one of the larger chips. Saylee stole it from him.

"Well, Helen… our grandmother… she said we're welcome to stay in Mahogany with them," Saylee said, digging it into the ketchup. "You'll definitely like it, Siren. Our grandfather's an ice master. He's got some kind of permanent iceberg setup in his dojo."

"Silver, tell me we're going there," Siren said immediately. "I don't care if we have to put up with idiot patrol here. Oh, please?"

"Why not," Silver said with a shrug, not looking up. "I've got nowhere better to go."

"Hey, there's more 'leccy comin'," Mary commented, looking around. Something leapt out of a bush.

"Hello, just when you least expect it!" a man yelled. He was short, squat and balding, and was holding a camera aloft. "I am Cameron the photographer! You are miss Saylee, right? Can I have a photo for the Daily News?" He started clicking away without waiting for permission.

"Aw dammit, it's this jackass again!" Blue yelled, leaping to his feet and grabbing Saylee's hand to pull her to hers. Chips went flying. "Pete, the camera! Everyone else SHIFT!" He started returning all of his Pokémon while running. Saylee did likewise.

"What just happened?" she asked, running along with Blue. Cameron the photographer was yelling at Pete to give his camera back.

"I caught this freak trying to break into the hospital while you were laid up," Blue said. "I wouldn't give a damn if he could just _ask_ like a normal human being, but he keeps turning up in the creepiest, randomest places like some kind of stalker or something."

"Silver?" Saylee called, looking over her shoulder. Silver was running after them with Mag hovering over his shoulder.

"Mag sparked the guy's camera, so it won't work anymore," Silver said, puffing a little as he tried to keep up with Saylee and Blue. Saylee extended her other hand to him. Silver stared at it for a moment, before reaching out and grabbing her sleeve. "Hurry up, if we've only got three more days here, I really wanna go see a movie in an actual cinema. If you two drag me to some lovey-dovey crap, I'm running away and not coming back."

{}

"And that was Wyatt Wills playing _The River Flows In You, _and I'll be back in an hour with the _Pokémon March_. Until then, here's everyone's new favourite, _Try _by…"

"What is all this?" Silver asked, reaching up to one of the dials on the soundboard. The techie grabbed Silver's hand.

"Sorry, kid, you can't touch this stuff until Mr Wills is disconnected," he said. Silver snatched his hand away, glowering at the man. The tech turned back to his work, fading up a rock ballad over the last notes of piano music. "Alright, you're off!"

"Cool!" Wyatt got up from his piano and stretched walking through the door between the sound room and the control booth and giving Saylee a hug. He was extremely tall and lanky, with curly dark-red hair and a lot of freckles. "Hey, cuz. So, like the music?"

"I love music," Saylee said, surprised by the warm hug but hugging back. "When I got to Johto, I started listening to this channel all the time. I never realized it was my cousin playing those beautiful piano solos!"

"Thanks! Hey, little guy," Wyatt said, ruffling Silver's hair. "So I'm not the only ginge in the family now?"

"Your hair's curly, it looks stupid and girly," Silver said jerking away.

"Cool, you're a poet. Well, I'm on radio, I don't need to look pretty," Wyatt laughed. "Hey, Craig? We're just going down to the canteen for some coffee, can you page me five minutes or something before I'm on?"

"Go on, then," the techie said, pressing an intercom button. "Hey, Cam, where the hell's the weather report?"

"C'mon, this way," Wyatt said, leading them down the hall. The Radio Tower looked completely different from when Saylee had last been inside; the furniture had been rearranged so the potted plants and soft sofas were all upright, people were smiling instead of screaming and there were friendly security guards instead of attacking Rockets. They passed the viewing window for DJ Ben's recording booth on the way. Whitney was standing in front of it, practically glued to the glass and twirling a lock of her hair around her finger while staring at the admittedly very attractive DJ Ben. Saylee said hello, and while Whitney didn't look up or speak she did wave to acknowledge her. "So where's your boyfriend?" Wyatt asked Saylee.

"He's n—he's leaving tomorrow morning and he had to stop by the train station and find out exactly what time he needs to be there," Saylee said as they walked down the stairs and through to the canteen. "So we came to finally see you play! Thanks for giving a shout out to me while I was in the hospital, by the way."

"Because that wasn't lame or cheesy at all," Silver complained, hopping up onto a seat at an empty table in the canteen. It was a small room with a window into the kitchen where food could be ordered, six tables with six chairs at each of them, and a speaker quietly playing the music channel. The walls were mostly covered in signed pictures of various stars who'd worked at the radio station, some going back over three centuries judging by the dates. "I'm hungry. You're buying, right, ginge? Get me a sandwich or something."

"No please, so I'm picking a flavour for you and you can bet it'll be gross," Wyatt said, grinning at Saylee. "What's your poison, cuz?"

"If they have Lavaridge tea, I'm getting addicted to that stuff," Saylee said. "Someday, I need to find out where Lavaridge is and discover their secret."

"Tea, got it. Check this employee discount!" Wyatt got up and went over to the kitchen hatch. Saylee sat across from Silver.

"Do you want to hang out with him tonight?" Saylee asked Silver. "While Blue and I are out?"

"Do I _have_ to?" Silver complained. "He's annoying."

"You find everyone annoying," Saylee pointed out. "And you find Blue and I 'icky', and since tonight is the last time we're going to see each other for a few months…"

"You're going to be extra-icky, yeah, yeah," Silver grumbled. "Everyone _is_ annoying. I'm just more used to your annoying, is all."

"Tea for you, fizz for you and joe for me," Wyatt said, sitting down and handing out drinks. "What's up?"

"I know you two haven't really met before, so would you be up for looking after Silver tonight while I'm out with Blue?" Saylee asked Wyatt.

"Sure," he said, blowing on his coffee. "You've got a prickly rep, kiddo, and I see it's not unearned, but _everyone_ has their music and I promise we will find yours."

"Don't leave me alone with this nutter," Silver begged Saylee.

"It's just for one night," Saylee promised, stirring some milk into her tea. "In the morning, I'll pick you up and we'll head for Mahogany. You up for that?"

"You'd better not go without me," Silver said threateningly. "I'll hunt you down if you leave me behind."

"Wow, _somebody's_ got abandonment issues," Wyatt observed. "Don't worry, kiddo. If she runs off without you, I will make sure that the music channel plays nothing buuuuuuuuut…." He looked critically at Saylee for a moment. "Synth dance beats."

"You are pure, molten evil, is it in the red hair?" Saylee groaned. "You hear that, Silver? He knows I love that channel and he intends to fill it with hell itself. There's no way I'll leave you behind." She smiled. "I promise I wouldn't anyway, though. I won't leave you behind if you don't want me to."

"Why should I care what you do?" Silver grumbled. "Where's my food?"

"Oh, ceez, where is my brain?" Wyatt gasped, jumping to his feet. "Be right back!" He ran off again to the hatch. A few more people had wandered into the canteen and queued up at the kitchen hatch before he got there.

"Silver, have you been to see your mother in jail?" Saylee asked quietly. "She's being held in city until the trial. It's taking a while, there's a lot of Rockets to sentence…"

"I don't want to see her," Silver said firmly. "I really don't."

"Are you sure?" Saylee asked gently. "I mean, you don't have to. She's an awful person, but as you've said, she _is_ still your mum. Are you sure there isn't anything you want to say to her?"

"She's never listened to anything I say anyway, what would be the point?" Silver muttered, staring into his can of fizzy juice. "I don't care, anyway. She always lied to me. Never kept her promises, both of them were always running off for Rocket stuff and leaving me behind…"

"Silver, I'm not your mum," Saylee pointed out.

"Well, _duh_," Silver said, rolling his eyes.

"Which means that when I say I'll pick you up at seven tomorrow so we can both see Blue off, I mean that I'll be back at seven tomorrow to pick you up so we can see Blue off and head for Mahogany," Saylee promised. "Okay?"

"You're a liar," Silver grumbled. "Why should I trust you?"

"Here you go, brat," Wyatt said, returning and tossing a sandwich to Silver. "What's going on?"

"Tell you what," Saylee said, unclipping the bag of eight pokéballs from her belt. "Wyatt, why don't you hang onto my Pokémon as well tonight? Blue and I probably won't be fighting."

"No problemo," Wyatt said, taking the bag and clipping it to his belt. "I don't actually have any Pokémon myself. They've never been my thing. Music is. Do either of you play anything?"

"I can play a couple of really simple tunes on the flute," Saylee said. "Not very well, though. What about you, Silver?"

"Music's stupid, it's for girls and weaklings," Silver said stubbornly. Wyatt mimed being shot in the heart.

"You say that like it's a bad thing. Well, we'll see if we can't change your tune by tomorrow," he said. "B-dum _TSH_!" He drummed on the table.

"That was bad and you should feel bad," Saylee laughed. She liked Wyatt; he radiated a calming aura of total, casual acceptance of everyone. She hoped that getting to hang out with a friendly male relative, even for a little while, would do Silver some good. "Well, Silver? Are you going to trust me now?"

"I'll tell you in the morning," Silver grumbled. "What the hell is wrong with you?" he asked when Wyatt burst out laughing.

{}

{}

_It's that time of week again, where… I feel like not very much happens except stuff that needs to happen in order for actual stuff to happen. Blerghle._


	35. Chapter 34

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"You nearly broke my hand when the Mismagius jumped out of the mirror," Blue complained as they walked out of the cinema on Azaela Street. Saylee squeezed his hand.

"Sorry," she apologized with a self-conscious grin. "It startled me. But you know what was worse?"

Blue nodded, glaring over his shoulder. "Gareth…"

"What?" The Haunter said, floating along behind them upside-down. "I'm bored and the kid's worried you're going to run off on him."

"Paranoid much?" Blue grumbled, walking faster and tugging Saylee after him. Gareth just floated faster.

"I don't think he trusts anyone, and it's not as if he doesn't have good reason," Saylee sighed, concentrating on ignoring Gareth blowing razzberries every time she spoke. "Remember who his parents are. It's all baby steps with that kid, but I really want to make the effort, you know? He's my little brother, and you can make some pretty decent guys out of jerks." She grinned and leaned against his side, walking close to him.

"Thanks," Blue said with a cocky smirk.

"Don't grin like that, you're still a work in progress," Saylee told him. "So, where do you want to go now?"

"How about we just go to the usual spot?" Blue said. "We haven't done that while we're here."

"Good idea!" Saylee agreed. "C'mon." They turned a corner and headed up Goldenrod Boulevard. It was late, past ten, but the city was still as bright as day with all of the brightly-lit shops and attractions.

"Where's the usual spot?" Gareth wanted to know. "Where is it? Huh? Huh? Huh?" Saylee shivered, and Blue swore as the ghost-type whizzed in and out of their heads.

"Not sure yet, but we'll find it," Saylee said, wincing as Gareth flew through her head again.

"That's it," Blue growled, releasing his Exeggutor. "Edgar! Trick Room him until about six am, could you?"

"Oh, with pleasure!" Edgar's middle head said while the other two grinned happily. Gareth yelled as the Exeggutor vanished them both in a cube of pink light.

"I worry that he's a touch psycho, but what can you expect from a guy with three heads, you know?" Blue sighed.

"Edward was pretty on the ball, but come to think of it, I only ever heard one of his heads talk," Saylee laughed.

"Edward?" Blue asked. Saylee's grip tightened for a moment. "Didn't know you had an Exeggcute. Do you want to tell me about him?"

"Sure," Saylee said. The walk to National Park was spent talking about Edward, the Exeggcute that Saylee had only had for a week, and then Sandra, the Spearow that Blue had lost in a battle with a wild Geodude and never spoken of before, and they ended up talking about all of their lost Pokémon on their way to the park. Not the cheeriest of topics for a date, but somehow Saylee found herself not even thinking of their deaths, only talking about their lives and their dreams and funny things they'd said and amazing battles they'd won.

"There!" Blue said as they walked through some of the trees in the National Park. "That looks like the usual spot."

"Yep," Saylee agreed, running through the trees and stopping at the edge of the grass, peering down the green slope. "Looks like it. Come on, let's get a seat."

"It's greener than anywhere in Kanto," Blue observed, sitting down on the chilly grass. Saylee leaned against him, suddenly cold once they were no longer moving. "Have you seen the kind of toys they were offering to Silver? No wonder the kid feels babied. When we were kids, slopes like these were the best toy in the world."

"You sound like an old man," Saylee laughed. "KIDS THESE DAYS!"

"Wait until you're eighteen, see how young and free you feel," Blue sighed dramatically. "Heh. Remember how funny it was when Red fell down that slope when he was ten and couldn't climb back up?"

"He didn't fall, you pushed him," Saylee pointed out. "And it was so steep that it might as well have been a cliff face."

"Good times," Blue said happily.

"I miss him," Saylee sighed. Blue hugged her.

"Me too," he said softly. "Sorry. I guess I fail at changing the subject to something better."

"Changing the subject?" Saylee asked, peering up at him. He looked uncomfortable.

"You were telling me about Vick," he said. "I was worried about what happened if we started talking about Paul. I'm just digging my own grave here, aren't I?"

"Paul…" Saylee stiffened a little. "I miss him, too."

"Can you… tell me about him?" Blue asked gently. "Please?"

Saylee sighed. "He… he talked a lot. Nonstop if you got him started," she said tentatively. "He was jealous of Lorenzo and wanted to learn how to surf. He lived in the Power Plant sometimes, but roamed all over looking for food. He actually worked for some bug Pokémon at one time, he said, protecting them from a flock of Spearow in exchange for some of their berries."

"That's pretty cool," Blue said. Saylee nodded.

"He was really cool," she said softly. "And he knew it. He was really cocky. He wanted to take on anything…"

"I know I've said this already, but I can't say enough that I'm sorry," Blue said, hugging Saylee tightly. "My only defence was that I was scared you'd react the same way Red had, that you'd run off into the mountains and never come back. That terrified me. I held your life as more important than your Pokémon's, and I'm sorry. But…" he sighed. "You know that if it came down to a choice between your life or your Pokémon, I'd always prioritize your life."

"That's the thing," Saylee admitted. "Something I've wondered. I started thinking about that time in Lavender Tower, when you and most of your Pokémon were possessed and I had to knock you all out for Adam to get you out."

"I remember," Blue said. "Well, not really, but you know."

Saylee nodded. "I started thinking… what if it had come down to… well, what if the only way to get you out was to kill one of your possessed Pokémon? What if I had to kill your Pokémon to save you? And the thing is, it wasn't a difficult choice. It was easy. Straight away, I knew I would. I tell myself I'd absolutely never kill—except for hunting for food, of course—but…"

"I thought that too," Blue said quietly. "I told myself I wasn't the kind of person who'd kill. Food's different, everyone knows that. But… I guess things aren't as black and white as all that. No absolutes. Except," he added, kissing her on the top of her head, "that you're a moron."

Saylee grinned. "And that you're a jerk. But still, in the end, you're not _that_ bad, I guess."

"Oh stop, you flatter me so," Blue said, leaning down to kiss her again, this time on the lips.

"Hello, just when you least expect it!"

"GARY! DON'T LET THAT CREEPER GET AWAY!"

{}

Aside from Blue, five other trainers were making the trip back to Kanto with the supply train. A woman with long silver hair and a person with fluffy purple hair were evidently regulars on this trip and were chatting familiarly to the conductor. A young man with blue hair was texting relentlessly on his pokégear. An elderly lady with short grey hair and a long coat was tending the jagged antlers of a large, battle-scarred Stantler and pleasantly answering a barrage of questions about Kanto from a flame-haired man with a foreign accent.

"Be careful," Saylee said, picking out Carrie, Hernan, Tobias and Mary's pokéballs and handing them to Blue.

"Good luck finding Red," Blue said, pocketing her pokéball. "When the snow starts, right? Do you know when that'll be?"

"Soon, I hope," Saylee sighed. Blue leaned over and kissed her.

"Can you two idiots give it a _break_? You're in _public_," Silver complained, shoving them apart. "It's _gross_."

"Do you want me to zap them?" Mag asked.

"Not yet," Silver said darkly. Blue made a face at him.

"Everybody here? Let's get a move on!" The conductor yelled. The other five made for the train.

"That's my ride," Blue said, shouldering his bag. "See you in the spring. I'll miss you," he added, leaning over and giving Saylee a quick kiss again. Saylee leaned up on her tiptoes as he pulled away, drawing it out just a little longer and ignoring the loud gagging noises coming from her half-brother.

"I'll miss you too," she said. "Be safe! I don't want to have to go into the mountains looking for you, too!"

Blue ran off to the train, waving at Saylee. "Focus on finding Red first!" he yelled, jumping in and immediately whacking the boy with blue hair over the head for whistling.

"Can we _go_ now?" Silver complained as the train pulled away. Mag buzzed happily as it started moving.

"Do you have everything?" Saylee asked him, watching the train go.

"I've got everything, can we _go_?" Silver whined, tugging at Saylee's arm. The train shot out of sight and Saylee turned to leave the station.

"Let's go, then," she agreed. "I'll give Helen a call and tell her we'll be there in a couple of days…"

"Don't be an idiot," Silver said, picking a pokéball out of his pocket. "This guy wouldn't stop hanging around me, and he asked that cri—_Bill_," he corrected himself petulantly when Saylee glared sharply at him. "He asked _Bill_ if he could come with, and because Bill's an idiot he said yes."

"Bill's Kadabra? His name's Alec, right?" Saylee said with interest.

"I dunno, probably," Silver said flippantly, releasing Alec. Something was off about him, and it took Saylee a moment to realise what.

"Ahh," Alec said, looking at both of his spoons in turn and then twisting around to look at where his tail used to be. "This one understood that it took one a wealth of new experiences to achieve this state, but this is still rather sooner than this one expected." The Alakazam turned back to them. "Pleasure to see you again, Miss Pryce."

Saylee started. She was getting used to the idea of having grandparents, cousins and even a little half-brother, but it was the first time that anyone had addressed her as "Pryce". It was kind of cool in an odd way. She'd never had a surname before, aside from "Johanna's daughter".

"Pleasure to see you too, Alec," she said. "Do you think you can teleport us to Mahogany Town?"

"This one can indeed, now," Alec said, raising his spoons. "As a Kadabra it would have been difficult, having not been to this place before, but this one believes that if a woman could visualize it in her head…"

Saylee held out her hand to Silver. "Ready to go see what Mahogany's like in good weather?" she said with a smile. Silver stared closely at her hand.

"I guess," he said slowly. "You came back, so I guess you're not a _complete_ liar." He tentatively reached out and took her hand. He glanced at Mag, who floated over and gently clung to Silver's shoulder without zapping him. "Can we go _now_?"

"Go ahead, Alec," Saylee said, closing her eyes and thinking of the large building that she'd first seen Arthur Pryce in front of.

"Then we go!" Alec said. There was a flash of light that Saylee could see even through her closed eyes, and then the cement under her feet turned to grass. Saylee opened her eyes to see that they were standing in a small park in the middle of the town. They were a few feet away from a playground, where children stopped playing on the few unbroken pieces of equipment to stare at Saylee and Silver's sudden appearance. They were surrounded by wood-and-stone houses, some with visible repair work still going on.

"Is this it?" Silver said, looking around and returning Alec. "What're you idiots gawking at?" he yelled sharply at the kids. "Fuck off!"

"Silver, watch your language!" Saylee told him as the kids scattered. "They weren't doing anything wrong. Anyway, I think we're here." She pointed at a long stone wall that was visible at the end of the street. "I'd say that's it. I read about Mahogany Town while I was in hospital. Did you know that this town is nearly six thousand years old? A village was first recorded as being here in 507 BDE. Although none of the original buildings are still here. The occasional rampage by enraged Gyarados does that. But I read that the oldest building still standing is the Pryce family mansion."

"_Mansion_?" Silver said, staring at Saylee.

"Used to be an early-empire fortress," Saylee explained, "but all of the upper floors kept getting knocked down during storms. The bottom floor's below the outer wall, so it was just roofed off as a single-story mansion in about 1963 ADE. It's still like that. Apparently the Pryce family are the last descendants of the ninja clan that used to live beneath the town…"

"Are you telling me we're descended from _ninjas_?" Silver said incredulously. "…That's _kinda_ cool. I guess." Saylee grinned. They got to the end of the road and started following the stone wall around, looking for the entrance. "So what do BDE and ADE mean? What's all that guff?"

"Oh, I was just reading about that… history's interesting, don't you think?" Saylee said, trying to remember what the acronyms mean. "Oh! That's it. Before Draconic Empire and After Draconic Empire. When the Dragon Clan took over the whole of the Fairlands—Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh, with a bit of Orre annexed, I think it said somewhere—they considered it such a big deal that they started counting the calendar from there. You know the year?"

"Fifty-seven ninety," Silver said. "So that means…"

"It's been five thousand, seven hundred and ninety years since the Dragon Clan was at the height of its power," Saylee explained.

"I knew that," Silver insisted. "I was about to say that."

"Really? You got better schooling than I did," Saylee said, peering around the corner. "Professor Oak knows everything there is about Pokémon, but nobody knew much about world history… there's the entrance!"

"So, what? We just knock and walk in?" Silver said, dragging his feet a little. Mag gave him a little nudge.

"I guess so," Saylee said, trying to tug him along. "Helen—_Granny_ said we could." It felt weird to use that word, but Saylee hoped that the familial term would make Silver feel more relaxed. He was already looking uncomfortable, and he was _rude_ when he felt uncomfortable. "C'mon, it'll be fine."

"I'm not scared," Silver said quickly. "We had a _big_ house in Viridian, y'know. Lots of it was full of Rocket stuff, but it was big."

"This looks like a big house too," Saylee said as they reached the door. "But I can promise you that it's not full of Rocket stuff." There was a button next to the door. Saylee pressed it and a buzzer rang.

"_Hello_?" a voice said over the intercom. It was a woman's voice. Saylee didn't recognize her.

"Hi, my name's Saylee, and I'm with Silver," Saylee said. "Um…"

"_Helen and Arthur's new grandkids? Oh, welcome! I'll send Lucy out to let you in!_"

"Thank you," Saylee said, stepping back to wait. She squeezed Silver's hand and he yanked it away.

"You're not a _complete_ liar," he muttered. "But if they don't like us and make us go, I'm blaming you."

"Don't call anyone a bitch or a fucking idiot and we ought to be alright," Saylee said, still holding her hand out. Silver slowly took it again.

"I will if they are," he muttered. The doors creaked open and Saylee was caught in a surprise glomp.

"Another girl in the family! _Finally_!"

{}

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_The weather here is oddly gorgeous, so I'm spending a lot of time sleeping and reading in the sun instead of playing or writing any Pokémon XD Good thing this is mostly finished already…_


	36. Chapter 35

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Are you Lucy?" Saylee choked out. The tall brunette had hugged her so hard that Saylee was swung off of her feet and couldn't quite find the ground again. Silver was sniggering.

"Yep!" Saylee's cousin set her down and held her at arm's length while she looked her up and down. Lucy had dark red eyes and long, wavy brown hair. She was wearing silver-rimmed glasses and a long white coat. "You'll do. Nice to meet you! And is this Silver?" She let Saylee go and crouched in front of Silver, who crossed his arms and glared at her. "Ornery little brat, aren't you? Nice to meet you, li'l cuz! Cute hair. Are you a boy or a girl?"

"Oi! I'm a _boy_, you stupid bitch!" Silver yelled angrily.

"Silver, what did I tell you about calling people stupid bitches?" Saylee said warningly.

"She called me a _girl_," Silver complained, pointing at Lucy, who giggled. "Mag!"

"Mag, if you electrocute anyone in this house I will have Georgia remove you from it," Saylee said levelly. "Silver, don't set your Pokémon on your relatives."

"Oh, maybe he should!" Lucy said, getting to her feet.

"Excuse me?" Saylee said, confused.

"Well, y'know, the traditional way for two trainers to get to know each other and their Pokémon is by battle, isn't it?" Lucy said, pushing them back out of the front doors. "C'mon, there's this great field that everyone uses for casual battles. Hey, Greta?" she said, pressing the intercom. "I'm taking Saylee and Silver out for fights, if anyone's looking for us."

"_Of course you are_," sighed the woman that had greeted Saylee before. "_Have fun!_"

"Shall we?" Lucy said, closing the doors and setting off down the road.

"I'm all for it," Saylee agreed, glancing over at Silver. "You?"

"…she's probably really weak, I can beat her," Silver decided, sticking his hands in his pockets and following sullenly.

They passed through a street of shops and a couple of blocks of houses, with Lucy keeping up a random running commentary of good shops, friends' houses and places of interest, before a line of boulders abruptly cut off the houses from wide open fields. "These are the remains of an old city wall," Lucy said, patting one of the boulders as she went past. "Pat it there, where the hand mark is. It's good luck."

"Why's there a hand carved into it?" Saylee asked, patting the red mark about four feet up on one of the grey boulders. It was a huge hand; her own barely filled its palm.

"Archaeologists think it might have been ceremonial, something to do with welcoming people into the town," Lucy said with a shrug. "There's something like fifteen distinct boulders from the old wall that all have their own little superstition or myth attached to them. I'll show you sometime. Right, for now—see those two flat rocks?"

"I see them," Saylee said. Two large rocks were set roughly forty metres apart across a worn area of grass with random chunks gouged out of the ground. Saylee could see a worn-smooth oval in the nearest rock.

"You're the challenger, so you have to go stand on the farther one," Lucy said, giving Saylee a push. "I stand here, we fight. Three on three sound good to you?"

"Where do we go?" Mag asked Silver.

"I dunno, but I'm gonna go find something interesting to do unless they stop talking and start fighting," Silver grumbled, kicking the dirt at the base of Lucy's stone.

"Don't worry, I'm in," Saylee said, running off across the field. When she got to the designated boulder, her fingers danced across the pokéballs on her belt for a while before settling on one. Saylee held it up in the air to signal that she was ready to go.

"On go, then," Lucy shouted, holding up her own first choice. "Ready… set… GO!"

Lucy's first Pokémon was a Dewgong. Saylee was very, very relieved that she'd picked Nider first. Chip and Georgia would both be at great risk from a Dewgong, and powerful as Chaz was, he still wouldn't fare much better.

"This is Seraphine," Lucy said proudly. "Sera, this is my cousin Saylee, the one I was telling you about!"

"Hi," Seraphine said, bowing her head and flicking her tail elegantly. She looked to Nider. "And you are…?"

"Call me Nider, babe," he said, grinning. "I promise I'll go gentle on you…"

"And they said chivalry was dead," Seraphine commented dryly. "Well, I can fix that. Luce, darling, are we fighting or having tea on the battlefield?"

"Just getting the introductions done," Lucy said. "Alright then, Ice Beam!"

"You too, Nider!" Saylee ordered. Nider and Seraphine both fired streams of ice from their horns at the same moment. The two beams clashed in a shower of ice fragments. "Now Double-Kick!"

Nider leapt over the ice shower and kicked Seraphine forcefully. She wailed in pain as she hit the ground hard.

"Aurora Beam!" Lucy called quickly. Seraphine smirked as she hit Nider with a beam of rainbow light from point-blank range.

"Looks like a KO to me!"

"Conor, what are you doing here?" Lucy called, looking up to her left. "Don't you have a job?"

"Yeah, but rumours that if you go to the lake you'll be attacked by mutant Gyarados have kinda cramped my business," A man called back. He was sitting on a ledge about six feet high that ran along the north side of the field. He had light brown hair, almost blond, and the same dark red eyes as Lucy. "Greta said that the new cousins got here and you immediately kidnapped them out here. Is this them?"

"Nobody kidnapped us," Silver said indignantly, running over to climb up onto the ledge next to Conor. "Hey, you, why didn't you tell me there was a good view from up here? Who're you, anyway?"

"I'm Lucy's big brother and your most awesome cousin, Conor," Conor said, holding out his hand for Silver to shake. Silver pointedly ignored him. "Well, it's nice to meet you _too_. Silver, right? Are you Saylee, then?" he shouted.

"That I am," Saylee called back, returning the unconscious Nider. "Nice move."

"Awww, I had the advantage anyway," Lucy said, her proud grin at odd with her modest words. "Great stuff, Sera. Alright, cuz, ready for round two?" she asked, returning Seraphine and selecting another pokéball.

"Bring it on," Saylee said, choosing Georgia. She had decided not to use Chaz for this fight, so Chip was her best and she wanted to save him for last. She suspected that Lucy was doing the same. "Ready… set… GO!"

Lucy's second Pokémon looked like a pile of brown hair with tusks and a round, pink nose. Saylee clicked open her Pokédex and identified it as Piloswine, a ground/ice type.

"Sasha, this is my cousin Saylee," Lucy explained. "Saylee… whoa, what's up with your Golem? Are they meant to have four arms?"

"Oi'm perfec'ly foine, moy love, don't you worry about me," Georgia said, cracking all of her knuckles. "Oi'm Georgia, oi am. This one o' your cousins, then, Lee?"

"Georgia, Lucy and Sasha," Saylee introduced them. "Lucy, Sasha, Georgia. Georgia, Rock Smash!"

"Roight you are!" Georgia charged forwards, all four fists ready to smash into Sasha. The Piloswine was quicker and managed to dodge one pair of fists, but couldn't avoid the second. "Oi really don't know 'ow most Golems get used t'usin' just two again," Georgia commented as her opponent staggered back.

"Ice Shard!" Lucy called. Georgia was pushed back by a barrage of ice splinters. "Don't let her near you!"

"Aye, lass, I winnae," Sasha said gruffly, firing more ice shards from under her thick, shaggy fur. "That wis _sair_!"

"Nice strategy!" Saylee called. "Shame it's useless! Georgia! Flamethrower!"

Georgia grinned at the immediate look of panic on Lucy's face and opened her mouth. Something _clicked_ and sparked inside and then a stream of fire hit Sasha hard.

"Sasha, return!" Lucy called as Sasha squealed in pain. "That has _got_ to be cheating somehow. Nobody could predict that!"

"Yeah, that's the point," Saylee laughed. "She won't tell me how she actually does it. I'm assuming flint is involved somewhere."

"Trade secret, moy love, oi ain't tellin'," Georgia said. "Your boy Chaz 'elped me get it down perfect, though."

"Great job," Saylee giggled, returning her.

"Sneaky bugger," Conor was heard to comment.

"Yeah, she does that," Silver added. "Weak people are sneaky."

"The scores are now one-all, then!" Conor boomed, holding up an imaginary microphone in imitation of the Pokéathlon commentator. "Tiiiiiiime for the tiebreaker, ladies!"

"Bring it," Saylee called, holding up Chip's pokéball.

"I promise you, I saved the best for last!" Lucy shouted back. "Ready… and… GO!"

They both threw their pokéballs into the air. Chip appeared and reared up, his mane igniting. He was facing what Saylee first took for a Vaporeon but, on closer inspection…

"Are you an eeveelution?" Saylee said in surprise to the pale-blue Pokémon. "Never seen anything like _you_ before."

"I don't doubt it, darlin'," the mysterious eeveelution said, flicking her head and making the long tresses of darker blue fur that hung past her ears flap and sparkled. "The name's Emilie. Are you that cousin Luce here was goin' on about?"

"I'm Saylee," she introduced herself with a nod. "This is Chip. Before we start, I just have to know… what _are_ you, Emilie?"

"She evolved when we were on a skiing holiday to Snowpoint City in Sinnoh about four years ago," Lucy said proudly. "They say she's a Glaceon… an extremely rare ice-type eeveelution!" She frowned at Chip. "He's a Typhlosion, isn't he…? Bollocks."

"I ain't afraid of him, darlin'," Emilie said proudly.

"Yeah!" Lucy said, perking up again. "You're way too strong to worry about type advantages! Ice Beam!"

"Admirable sentiments, but types aren't meaningless," Saylee called. "Lava Plume!"

"Whoops," Emilie giggled, nimbly flipping out of the way of a flying clump of red-hot lava. Her Ice Beam still got through, but turned to steam as it hit Chip, causing no visible damage. "Careful, darlin', you could singe someone like that!" She leapt out of the way of shot after shot of lava, never reaching Chip herself but too agile to be hit.

"This be goin' nowhere," Chip muttered between spitting lava. "Lee? Can I be tryin' what Chaz taught me?"

"It might be overkill," Saylee said dubiously. Chip fired another shot of lava that barely missed Emilie once again, and had to dodge backwards as she darted towards him before firing the next shot.

"I'm hardly bein' strong as Chaz," he pointed out.

"If you've got somethin' of interest up your sleeve, darlin', use it!" Emilie called.

"Double Team!" Lucy ordered. Dozens of Emilies surrounded Chip. "Don't you dare hold back! Let's see what you can do! Go, Emilie! Blizzard"

"You asked for it!" Saylee yelled. "Blast Burn!"

Chip's mane flared up, burning blue as dozens of Emilies blasted powerful frozen gusts at him. Chip roared and blasted out a wave of living fire that obliterated the blizzard. The waves split around Saylee, Lucy, Conor and Silver, rolling into fireballs that homed in on Emilie's images, dissipating them and surrounding the real Glaceon. Nimble as she was, she couldn't escape the fire that tracked her.

"Emilie, return!" Lucy called just before the fire struck. "Ceez… if that's the weaker attack, I'd hate to fight your Chaz. We've gotta do that sometime."

"Game, set and match!" Conor called. "You're pretty good, for girls."

"Says the man whose loss tally is well into triple digits," Lucy said sweetly, not looking up. Conor winced.

"Ceez, how weak are _you_?" Silver said incredulously, staring at Conor.

"Hey, I'll fight you too, if you want, Silver!" Lucy offered. "If you're a trainer too, we need to meet 'n' greet the traditional way, right?"

"Whatever," Silver said, hopping off of the ledge and heading over to Saylee. "Just go get healed first. I don't want to waste my time on someone weak."

"Yes, _sir_," Lucy said, rolling her eyes and running off in the direction of the town. "Clinic's right by the edge of town, I'll just be a minute!"

Silver stopped in front of the rock that Saylee was standing on. "Move, you're in my spot."

"What's the magic word?" Saylee asked.

Silver stared at her incredulously. "What do you think I am, _five_?" he objected.

"Are you going to act like you are?" Saylee retorted. "Adults say _please_. Save the threats for when that doesn't work."

"Fine," Silver grouched. "Will you _please_ move, you stupid bitch?"

"Ceez, kid, who taught _you_ how manners work?" Connor said, appalled.

"Nobody, that's the problem," Saylee said, crossing her arms. "Try again, Silver. Of course, you don't _have_ to stand here…"

Silver scowled, probably trying to decide whether "losing" constituted saying _please_ or giving up the spot. "_Please_ move," he eventually growled.

"Of course," Saylee said, smiling broadly at him and stepping off the rock. "Was that so hard? And if you'd just said that from the beginning, it'd all be done just that quickly."

"Yeah, yeah…" Silver picked one of his pokéballs out of his pocket and tossed it up in the air, juggling it impatiently. Mag sparked every time it bounced near him. "Where's that stupid loser? She's slow."

"You know, kid," Conor put in, "they say in Sinnoh that you catch more Combee with honey than with vinegar."

"I dunno what a Combee is, but it sounds weak," Silver said boredly. "Why would I want to catch something weak?"

"Aye-yi-yi… how the hell do you get through to that kid?" Conor asked as Saylee and Chip came over to join him. Chip boosted Saylee up so she could reach the ledge more easily.

"I'm banking on _patiently_," she said. "Believe it or not, he's made a lot of progress since I first met him." Conor looked incredulously from her to Silver.

"Sorry about the wait!" Lucy called, running up with her pokéballs in her arms. "Let's do this!"

"_Finally_," Silver complained.

{}

"She's so _pretty_!"

"I totally am," Siren agreed, basking in Lucy's squeals and awe. At the end of the day, Saylee stood with two wins against both Silver and Lucy, Silver with a loss against Saylee and a win against Lucy, and Lucy with two losses. She'd taken it well, rounding on Conor when he'd teased her for it and pointing out that as _he'd_ never beaten her, he was by default weaker than his nearly ten-year-old cousin. Silver had actually laughed at that, a mocking snigger but still a laugh. Conor hadn't bothered to challenge either of them and had instead headed off somewhere on his own, so Saylee still didn't know what Pokémon he had. She, Lucy and Silver were sitting together in the interior garden of the huge Pryce house with all of their Pokémon mingling and meeting one another.

The front path through the gate actually lead into the dojo hall, which Saylee had yet to see inside but was apparently cavernous and filled with permanent icebergs created by the Pryce family's extensive collection of powerful ice-types. They'd gone around the side to get to the front door to the main house, which was a loop around the ornamental garden. Saylee and Silver were having bedrooms made up in the west wing, which according to Lucy were probably formerly her brothers' rooms. There was also a guest room in there which was often Wyatt's, and an entertainment room with the biggest television that Saylee had ever seen. The east wing was where their grandparents' room and Lucy's parents' room was, along with the study and the library, which seemed to have wall-to-ceiling bookshelves instead of walls. Saylee couldn't wait to go through it; she'd picked up quite an interest in history since coming to Johto and finding out that there were records older than she was. Plus, there'd been nothing much to do in hospital but read.

The north wing had bathrooms, including a huge old-fashioned heated bath, and the rooms belonging to Greta and Hunter. Greta was the housekeeper, a ferocious ball of energy that seemed to be capable of being in four places at once to maintain the huge old house. She'd appeared briefly to shake Saylee's hand in welcome and pinch a horrified Silver's cheeks before seeming to teleport away to make up fresh beds for them. Lucy had warned Saylee that Greta was a tremendous history buff and would be able to tell Saylee every last thing that had happened to every plank of wood in the house over the past six thousand years. Hunter was Greta's youngest son, and while he'd waved at Saylee and Silver, he seemed painfully shy and had finished tending a bush in the garden very quickly and scurried off to somewhere else in the house without speaking. He was twenty-one, like Conor, according to Lucy, and had two elder sisters, one working on a ferry service and the other studying medicine in Sinnoh.

The south wing had the kitchen, dining room and a formal sitting room for greeting guests. Conor had gone off to find his parents while Saylee, Silver and Lucy had went through the dining room to the ornamental garden to hang out, let out their Pokémon and get to know one another.

Silver had surprised Saylee by introducing his Pokémon—reluctantly, sullenly, but introducing them—by name. When she asked him, he retorted, "I didn't _ask_ for their names, they just told me on their own, okay?"

"Silver, you don't need to defend yourself as if you said something wrong," Saylee told him, sitting on the wooden porch that ran around the ornamental garden and dangling her feet above a flowerbed. "I'm very impressed that you remembered all their names."

"I didn't _try_ to," Silver said quickly, looking away from her.

"Even more impressive," Saylee said, leaving him looking confused as she turned to Gareth, his Haunter. "How are you?"

"Feeling tough," Gareth said with a broad grin. "But I still feel like I can get tougher, and I'm not going anywhere until I do!"

"Did I ever tell you that I used to have a Kadabra friend named Alan?" Chaz was saying to Alec. "His moustache was shorter than yours, though."

"Long moustaches are a symbol of our power," Alec explained.

"So this Alan of yours must've been weaker than Alec here, and that's pretty _weak_," Gareth laughed.

Chaz glared at him. "He died young, protecting his friend and student," he said shortly.

"That sounds very noble," Alec said, bowing his head to Chaz.

"Yeah, weak but fearless," Gareth put in again. "A fatal mix, but _oh so noble._"

"I can't tell if you're complimenting him or insulting him," Chaz growled, "but I've fried ghosts before and I'll do it again if you're disrespecting my late friend."

"Don't give him the satisfaction, he's just messing with you," Zeb sighed, before snapping his fangs at Gareth. "Jerk used to mess with my sonar back before I had eyes."

"It was funny!" Gareth insisted.

"My oldest brother's called Alan," Lucy told Saylee. "He's basically Conor, but less muscly because he's not a sports nut like Conor. He's never beaten me either, but he thinks he should inherit because he's the oldest. He lives with his girlfriend by the lake. They'll probably come down for dinner, you can meet them then."

"I can't wait for Red to meet all of you," Saylee told her, "although you'll have to get used to three people being able to beat you…"

Nider was walking around Mag next to one of the ornamental trees. "How d'you even _work_?" he asked in confusion.

"Magnetism," Mag said simply.

"The amount of sense that makes to me," Nider said in confusion, "is just below jack-squat. Oi, Georgia! D'you know how this thing works?"

"Just 'cause oi used to 'ave a magnetic core moiself don't mean oi knows 'ow _that_ one works," Georgia said, turning back to her conversation with Sasha. "Oi knows how rocks work, that's all, not them metals. 'Ow about you, moy love? See alroight through that?"

"Aye, but ah dinnae need tae," Sasha said, fluffing her long brown hair. "Goat me nose, aight? Smells every'hin' jus' fine. Even rocks." She sniffed at Georgia. "You goat a wee bit ay exposed sandstone, ken?"

"Her accent be 'mindin me o' Mary's," Chip commented. "They both be havin' that same funny way t'be speakin'."

"Isn't that the sea calling the river wet," Tyra grumbled. "Still can't figure out how _you_ of all people got badass. You were a snivelling little wimp of a Cyndaquil!"

"And you ain't been changin' a bit, Tyra," Chip said levelly. "Wonder 'ow Chet's been doin'. I ain't been seein' 'im in months."

"Probably still sucking up to everyone," Tyra sniffed. "Who wants to play around with a bunch of little kids, anyway?"

"Your trainer's a little kid," Chip pointed out.

"He doesn't play."

{}

{}

_Long days working, long evenings watching Star Trek TOS… I decided to do this after watching _Into Darkness_ and I'm glad I did. I'm kinda understanding why people are so famously obsessed with this show._


	37. Chapter 36

_Pokémon: 19 Deaths: 3_

"Do you know what was funniest?" Silver said, munching on one of the muffins he'd stolen out of the kitchen and sitting on the desk chair in Saylee's room backwards. "When that green-haired bitch asked what your favourite subject was at school and you were all 'I liked it when Professor Oak told us about Pokémon' and everyone was just staring like they had no idea what to say. Like they were thinking that you were dumb for not going to school but they didn't want to say it because they're so _polite_. I hate shit like that. They should just say stuff."

"It would have been rude, Silver," Saylee said, taking the back off a photo frame that Lucy gave her for her photo of herself and Red. "As is calling your aunt a 'green-haired bitch'. I don't think they quite get it. Lucy said that when she was growing up she heard that Kanto was a desolate wasteland with nobody living in it and it's only in the past couple of years that they found out it's not entirely lifeless, so nobody quite knows what to make of it. They don't get that stuff like school and television and radio aren't big things in Kanto like they are here." She clicked the frame into place and glanced over as Silver took a bite and showered crumbs all over the floor of her new room. "Greta's going to have my hide for that. Did you see how fast that woman got to the table when we were done eating? How does she do it? And why are you stealing food from the kitchen? They laid on a huge dinner for us!"

"I don't think eating that many vegetables is right," Silver complained. "Besides, there's food all over the place here, why wouldn't I eat it? They're rich as fuck, they can get more."

"Silver, I did give you a list of words that aren't considered okay to use in normal conversations, didn't I?" Saylee said, setting the photo frame on the bedside table. There wasn't much decoration in the room, aside from some faint marks on the light yellow walls from the adhesive backs of posters. The furniture consisted of a bed with matching yellow bedspread, a bedside table with some drawers, a desk and a wardrobe, all large, heavy old wood pieces that had probably been in the house for a few centuries. All of Saylee's things could fit in the bedside table, but she was trying to spread things around to make the room feel less oversized.

"I don't get it, they're just stupid words," Silver complained. "What's that ugly thing?"

"This?" Saylee held up the tangle of string and mementoes that made up her dreamcatcher. "It's made up of things I've been left, or given… see this spoon in the middle? It belonged to my Kadabra, Alan."

Silver leaned over the back of the desk chair to peer at the spoon. "Didn't your Charizard say he's dead?"

"He is," Saylee agreed, untangling the string to hang the dreamcatcher on the wall from. "I'll never forget him. This coin here belonged to his student, a Drowzee named Daisy. She died in a landslide when she was a Hypno."

"Why do so many Pokémon _die_ around you?" Silver asked.

"Silver," Saylee bit out, gripping the dreamcatcher, "do you ever think that sometimes the things you say might hurt people's feelings?"

"What do I care? You hate me anyway," Silver said, finishing his muffin. "Everyone does."

Saylee stared at him, startled by how blithely he'd said that. "Silver… you piss me off a lot, but I do not and have never _hated_ you. Even when I didn't know you were my little brother."

"Why not?" Silver said, staring. "You just said that I piss you off."

"That's not always a reason to hate someone," Saylee sighed, setting her dreamcatcher down on her lap. "I hate your mother for being violently abusive towards her _child_. I hate our dad for being abusively neglectful all around and also for being a criminal mastermind who's behind the suffering of countless people and Pokémon. I hate a lot of people who've murdered my Pokémon simply because they could, because we were in the wrong place, because they like to kill. I _don't _hate people who've killed my Pokémon by accident, who didn't want to…" she fidgeted with the strings on her dreamcatcher, making Daisy's coin and Sabrina's clink together. "You are a damaged little boy who says a lot of mean things as self-defence. I have found you annoying, but never hated you. If I saw any other kid like you, I'd hope someone would try and be there for them to give them a chance to not grow up to be a mean adult. You're my little brother, so I'll try and be there for you."

"Who says I need you?" Silver said, biting into another muffin. "An' 'm on'y y'r h'f-bruffa," he added around a mouthful of muffin.

"Sure," Saylee sighed, scrabbling around at the bottom of her bag for a pin to attach her dreamcatcher to the wall with. "There we go…"

"So what's in that bag?" Silver asked. Saylee looked up in surprise. "Stop looking even dumber than usual and tell me what's in the bag!"

"Magic word?" Saylee asked, poking at the small cloth bag hanging off the bottom of her dreamcatcher.

"_Please_," Silver said, rolling his eyes and eating more muffin. "Wud iffit?"

"Hold 'em up to your ears," Saylee said, taking the little blue and red fragments out of her bag. "What do you hear?"

"Sea," Silver said, holding up the blue one. "And, I dunno, landslide?" He held up the two stones and stared at them. "These are _weird_. Where'd you get them?" he threw them back at Saylee. She caught them and put them back into their bag.

"I found them in the Sevii Islands," Saylee explained. "My Kabuto, Kaito, found this cave…"

{}

"Completely impassable?" Saylee said with dismay over breakfast the next morning.

"It'll be about three months until the path is safe to travel, yes," her grandfather said, not looking up from the news feed that he was reading from his pokegear's holoprojector. "And since the Dragon Clan last changed their ways around the time we learned to work steel, there aren't any teleporters in or out. They deliberately make it as hard as possible to get in, and don't doubt that when you do, you'll have to fight to get anything at all."

"Lucy goes every spring to train," Helen added, doling out pancakes onto their plates.

"They are strong, but I'm an ice trainer and they all train dragons, so I tend to hold my own," Lucy said proudly, accepting her pancakes.

"Three months… I think I'd like to train Gabriel," Saylee commented thoughtfully. "Do you know the best way up to the Lake of Rage?"

"Gabriel?" Helen asked, pouring some syrup onto Silver's pancakes. "What's wrong, dear?" she added when he looked disgusted.

"What _is_ this?" Silver said, dipping a finger in the syrup. "It looks like snot."

"It's sweet, dear, you'll like it," Helen said. "What kind of Pokémon is Gabriel, dear?"

"The Gyarados I caught here," Saylee explained. "The one with the red scales."

"I saw that poor creature in Goldenrod," Pryce said sternly. "He is damaged. He is an out-of-control menace. Far too much power that he has no idea how to use. Are you sure that you can control him?"

"I've trained a Gyarados before, so I know how to handle and train their power," Saylee promised. "The Lake of Rage is his home, so hopefully it'll help him keep calm."

"Or it might freak him out more," Silver grumbled, licking tentatively at the syrup and briefly looking pleasantly surprised before consciously looking disgusted again. "It's where he evolved, stupid."

"That's what this is for," Saylee said, holding up the Lure Ball that she'd captured Gabriel in. "If he panics, I can return him." The rest of her Pokémon were eating in Pryce's cavernous—and _freezing_—dojo with Silver, Lucy and the rest of the Pryce family's Pokémon, and had slept there the night before as well. Nider and Zeb were the only ones who seemed to mind the cold; Chip and Chaz's internal fires kept them cozy; Tyra and Georgia didn't mind the cold; Gareth, Alec and Mag didn't feel the cold; and Siren, like all of the Pryce Pokémon, was an ice-type and loved it.

"Very good," Pryce said with a nod. "There is a well-marked tourist path to the Lake, it should be no trouble to find."

"I can show you the way there," Lucy offered. "I've heard about this guy, but I'd love to see him!"

"You'd better train on the far side of the lake from where the tourist attractions are, though," Lucy's mother Debbie said. She was a squat woman with short, light-green hair who worked as a teacher at the local high school and was constantly fretting about her students and her children. "Cleanup has been trouble enough for the boys as it is."

"Oh, can I help with that at all?" Saylee asked.

Helen shook her head. "Don't worry, dear. It's nearly done anyway and you're just out of the hospital," she insisted. "You go easy on your training, you hear?"

"Yes, ma'am," Saylee said. Silver sniggered. He'd started scarfing down pancakes and somehow managed to smear syrup on his nose.

"You've got some training to do too, young man," Helen said, handing a napkin to him pointedly. "Your table manners!"

{}

The public side of the Lake of Rage had been cleaned up quite impressively, and they passed several people and Pokémon at work repairing the speedboats used for water sports. As Saylee, Lucy and Silver walked around the lake, though, they started to pass more and more debris. They had to climb over fallen trees more than once and had to forge entirely new paths through the trees around new pools created by craters filled with rainwater. The most unsettling things were the random items that the raging winds had blown up from Mahogany town. Saylee couldn't help staring at a little pink tricycle half-buried in mud. It reminded Saylee unpleasantly of some of the personal items that could be found in "ghost towns" in Kanto. Lavender was a literal ghost town, but there were others—abandoned towns apparently in the middle of nowhere with not a living human soul in them but personal effects scattered all over the place. Some were probably abandoned during the civil war as the humans in them fled, but others had clearly been left empty later, the human occupants all killed off by some epidemic or hungry Pokémon.

"What're you staring at, you idiot?" Silver said, giving her a push. "C'mon, I wanna see this Gyarados again, he blew the top off the Radio Tower, that was _kinda_ cool."

"I think we're probably good to train here," Lucy said, brushing some moss off of a fallen tree and spreading her jacket on it so she could sit down. "I'll send Sera into the water to tell anything down there to clear out. Don't want to freak out your Gyarados, right?"

"I don't think he's very stable, so that's probably a good idea," Saylee agreed, taking out Gabriel's pokéball. She watched Lucy's Dewgong dive elegantly under the water. A couple of flashes of rainbow light suggested that something below needed to be driven away.

"Show-off," Silver muttered, releasing Tyra. "You're way better than some stupid, girly Dewgong."

"I'm a girl too, squirt," Tyra growled. Mag gave a buzzing laugh at Silver's foul expression.

"Are you going to tell me that knowing your Pokémon's gender makes you weak, now?" Saylee laughed. "Lucy, do you think it's clear now?"

"Clear enough," Lucy said, giving Saylee a thumbs-up. Saylee stepped forwards, trying not to slip on the muddy ground, and released Gabriel into the water.

It was the first time she'd seen him clearly. He was small for a Gyarados, only about eighteen feet long. He roared unintelligibly when he first appeared, but then paused, looking around and sniffing slightly. Then his snarling mouth stretched into a smile, and he sank down into the water, dipping his head into it and humming.

"Gabriel?" Saylee called. "One of the other Magikarp said that your name's Gabriel. It is Gabriel, isn't it?"

"Gabriel," the red giant murmured, pulling his head back out of the water. "That's me. I'm Gabriel."

"I'm Saylee," Saylee said, reaching out a hand to him. Gabriel peered closely at her.

"You're _little_," he said wonderingly. He looked around. "The trees are so little. They were big before… why are they little now?"

"You're a lot bigger now," Saylee said softly. "You're a Gyarados, Gabriel, do you know?"

"A Gyarados?" Gabriel looked down at himself and roared. "Not blue!"

"You're a very special Gyarados," Saylee said. "But you're not used to being a Gyarados yet, are you?"

"No…" Gabriel looked back at his tail, splashing it in the water. The merest flicking of his tail had enough force to send waves as tall as Saylee splashing at the edge of the lake, nearly knocking Saylee herself over. Silver quickly scrambled up Tyra's back as the water lapped at him. "Look! _Waves_! I made _waves_!"

"You're very strong now that you're a Gyarados," Saylee said, still holding her hand out to Gabriel. Despite his deep, booming voice, Gabriel had a childish quality to his speech that unnerved her somewhat, and he seemed slow on the uptake despite having a lot of raw power. "Do you know how to use your power?"

"Power?" Gabriel wriggled his whole body and then roared. Blue fire spat haphazardly from his mouth. Saylee ducked, raising her arms above her head. "Power! Fire! Look!" He swung his head around, randomly spraying blue fire about.

"Make him _stop_!" Tyra yelled, firing a blast of water at one of the blue fireballs before it hit her. "You idiot! Control him!"

"Stop it, Gabriel!" Saylee yelled. "Gabriel, you have to stop! STOP!"

Gabriel didn't hear her. He was roaring too loudly as he happily spat dragonfire. Saylee raised the Lure Ball and returned him.

"Good job, liar," Silver said sarcastically. "Your Pokémon's retarded. Absolutely mental."

"Silver, be nice," Saylee said automatically. "It's not his fault. He was forced to evolve too soon… he's like a big child who doesn't understand what he's doing."

"A big child with enough power to burn down the whole forest," Lucy said, directing Seraphine to put out some small fires in the trees with jets of water. "He's either going to have to learn to control himself, or not come out of his pokéball. Did you see the waves building up from him flapping his tail? If he gets agitated, he could start tidal waves!"

"I'm going to let him out again and try to keep him calm," Saylee said.

"Well, I'm getting back a few feet," Tyra said, reaching up to check that Silver was secure and then taking several scuttling steps back. Lucy also climbed up the fallen tree trunk a little, sitting on the roots sticking up into the air. Sera dived below the water.

Saylee released Gabriel and stepped back. He reappeared in the water, looking confused.

"I put you in your pokéball," Saylee explained. "I'm going to do that any time you get out of control. You could really hurt someone by shooting your dragonfire around like that."

"Hurt…? I hurt someone?" Gabriel said, looking around frantically.

"No, no, no," Saylee said soothingly. Gabriel set his head down in the mud next to her, looking sad. "It's okay," Saylee said, stroking the crest on his head gently. He closed his eyes and hummed. "Just be careful with your fire, okay?"

"No fire?" Gabriel asked sadly. "I liked fire…"

"You can use your fire," Saylee promised, "but you have to learn to control it so you don't hurt anybody, okay? Do you want to hurt anybody?"

"Wanted to hurt the sound," Gabriel murmured. "The bad sound. It hurt. Wanted to hurt it back."

"You did," Saylee promised, reaching out to pet the dark red crest on his head. "You did. So, you wanted to hurt them, and you hurt them. Did you want to hurt me, or Silver?"

"You don't make the bad sound," Gabriel hummed. "Nice… you're nice. Don't want to hurt you. You're nice."

"You did, though," Saylee said softly. "Back then. You couldn't focus. You couldn't only hurt the sound. You hurt me too, and my friends, because you couldn't control your power."

"I hurt you? Didn't want to hurt you! No, no, _no…_" Gabriel reared back, shaking his head. "I just wanted to hurt the noise! No… I'm _bad…_"

"You're not bad, I know you're not, it was an accident!" Saylee yelled. "I'm going to help you, I promise…" Gabriel wasn't listening again, though; he was starting to thrash about in agitation, shaking his tail as well as his head, and the waves were getting up again. Saylee was buffeted backwards by a wave taller than her. She picked herself up and returned Gabriel.

"So… how many goes are you going to have at this?" Lucy asked. Saylee spat out a mouthful of water she'd accidentally swallowed and wiped some wet hair off of her face.

"As many as it takes," she said. "He seems good. I don't want to abandon him to forever in a pokéball."

"Like it's gonna work," Silver grumbled. "The same thing happens every time. You try to be nice and he just freaks out at you. You've gotta be stupid to keep trying. What makes you think it'll ever be different?"

"Same thing that keeps me trying with you," Saylee said, wringing out her scarf. Tyra and Mag laughed while Silver gaped. "Okay, let's see if that's calmed him down again…"

{}

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_Now introducing Gabriel the Gyarados as the new teammate! Initially ingame I picked a Staryu over him because I'd never used a Staryu before and wanted to try it… that lasted all of five minutes until a Rocket Raticate got a lucky crit _ So Gabriel it is._

_(I named him way back before I started watching _Supernatural_… now the name kinda makes me giggle :P)_

_Also, everyone everywhere should go see two moves: _Pacific Rim _and _The World's End._ They are extremely very good. This has been a public service announcement._


End file.
